It is anticipated to occur on Friday, not today. We will see if it happens tomorrow.

 

1. As one of your colleagues responded, things started changing before ASA bought XJT. You guys got used to the lucrative cost plus arrangement you had when you were the sole provider to CAL. Those days are over and in case you haven't noticed, margins have been getting smaller as major carriers squeeze their small lift providers.

2. Amount of money in the bank doesn't equal profits going forward....Inc. is barely making a profit and the XJT side isn't. Watching every penny is prudent in this environment and is the reason that ASA and Skywest have been profitable more than other carriers.

3. Your XJT may have stocked more parts...But it was also on the verge of BK. I'd rather have a more financially solvent carrier.

4. Funny how you attack ASA/Skywest for being "cheap" as you leave for Spirit....One of the cheapest airlines out there.

 

This will be good...


Popcorn ready.

 

all mainlines charge for services now from baggage to peanuts, so your point of being cheap airlines qualifies for all airlines.

 

Look...

It doesn't matter how we got here.

*distraction* LOOK A SHINY AIRPLANE! (EMB-175) *distraction*

 

Ummmmmmm yeah I guess they do not spend money they don't feel the need to. The difference is the management over there knows how to run an airline, makes boat loads of money (currently the most profitable airline PERIOD) and is growing significantly the next few years.........so in the Case of Spirit being cheap, you are right, but in this case cheap is good . ASA is just all over the place and is doing a terrible job of running an airline. Also, if Spirit was trying to save every last dollar, the wouldn't be Dicking around with Aceypalooze and Mini Indy, or having duplicate management positions.......

 

hhmmm, not siding with meatnuts, but this is a good point...

 

One of the problems that pilots have, in general, is they think that they are the only reason that management would do anything. In reality, most of those 'frivolous' things are done to create a feeling if belonging and ownership from the majority of labor groups, which includes flight ops, customer service, etc... Believe it or not, those things are actually beneficial in most instances.

 

We can spend $50,000 on printing and mailing flyers telling us how great we did last year but we can't pay a programer to fix our payroll software to, you know, actually pay us correctly. Management coming on a conference call saying "we don't always get it right but that doesn't mean we aren't trying" after completely dropping the ball on every single "improvement" they introduced for a year. We have an entire department sucking down payroll keeping these feel good programs going and yet our operation can't laminate a checklist so that is lasts for more then three days. This is about requiring the documentation of every minor employee infraction because we don't have the faith in our lower level management to actually manage anything.

We are a mickey mouse operation keeping up the charade of knowing what is going on. This isn't about just the pilots; this is about flying airplanes to make money and we suck at it. We are running around putting out fires and pretending like everything is just dandy while the operation and the front line employees have given up on any kind of unity or team spirit. I have zero faith in our Atlanta management.

 

What you described probably represents about 90% of every company involved in flying airplanes, whether it is a 141 flight school, 135 charter, or 121 airline.