Bob Crandall: Aid may not be enough
 

I liked his last remarks about how the money should be used. Keeping the people working as opposed to just dropping cash on their laps.

Jesus I thought he was dead.

https://youtu.be/YSZd6MnEuLw

old school Airline CEO...

“I think maybe what we need to do is establish a continuing relationship-- certainly not nationalization of the airlines, but some kind of a relationship where the government may provide sort of an underlying backstop.

And the airlines, in turn, agree to behave more like a utility and less like a private enterprise. I mean, look at the last six years. I mean, the industry spent more than its total free cash flow buying back its own shares. That really doesn't make any sense.”

We'll likely see some sort of additional regulations out of this (not Regulation).

Maybe airlines pay a fee to support an emergency fund, or the fed just requires that airlines maintain their own fund at specific levels... and the fed backstops that if we get hit by an asteroid.

I think the mood is not one of blaming airlines (this is an unlikely black swan), but we'll see some interest in improving things after the dust settles.

Good find. That was great. Thanks for posting.

That's an awesome idea. It would basically be catastrophic health insurance for the airlines. I'd like to see the actuarial tables for those policies :)

Didn't the Dodd Frank act that was created after the bank bailouts require them to keep more cash on hand?

It was basically what Rickair7777 was suggesting. A regulation that requires enough capital on hand to survive more than 3 weeks without needing to be bailed out. And maybe it would say that they can't do stock but backs until they have 3 months operating capital on hand.

I dunno

As much as I despise some of Crandall's leadership, there were some areas of leadership where he was dead on. He and the late VP Bob Baker could stand in front of an angry crowd and answer question after question with short answers with no BS. What was priceless was Crandall learning of some BS issue from line ops crews that was hidden by some flunky Manager as he stood on the stage. He would answer and glare at some VP learning of the weak crap.

Today? I'd hire Crandall to invade the new "Skyview" HQ and drive a Bobcat through that place for a week while dumping the refuse out the windows. Within the last few weeks, a couple of pilots in training took a walk over to the HQ and while admiring the opulence compared to many of our skanky pilots ops, and noticed some 20-30 somethings aimlessly running around the HQ giggling with no sense of purpose. They asked what they were doing, ...."We're having a scavenger hunt!" was the reply. It was during normal business hours.

Give Crandall a Bobcat, maybe a truckload of RPG's