On that note then.............puff, puff, give.

 

I will wager what ever you like. Cats out of the bag my friend. Let's just not let it get worse. Hold the line on scope.

 

I guess time only time will tell. Neither you nor anyone else know. Our management at DAL gave us 319/320 payrates much better then AWA, UsAir, JB, VA, & Sprirt. Does that make them certified idiots? DAL seems to be making $$$ just fine. Maybe you should just stick to flying airplanes, like me.

 

No thanks. I quit the stuff years ago.

 

I along with many of my other colleagues are trying to do better then just 'hold the line'. If no one tries, then it definitely won't get done.

 

I really hope that you guys do try to take it back. But with the AA bankruptcy, things will be headed in the other direction. 70 seat scope there will be blown wide open and 90 seats most likely will be as well. Then delta is going to try to talk all about scope parity. I'm not saying it won't happen but I'm saying it will be a hell of an uphill battle. Guys will probably have to give up some pay, work rules, etc. to take it back and I hope there's a lot more than just a few people out there willing to do it. Best of luck.

 

Trading 50 seaters for 70 seaters is like trading in your H1 Hummer for the newer and more improved H2 Hummer. Goes from 9mpg to 11mpg.

All games no sense.

 

Well, they gave you rates competitive at the time. Will that last ?

Yes, time will only tell. The driving force on that is the competitive landscape and unfortunately for us all, that seems about to change. I certainly bid you no ill future and hope the bar can stay as high as possible, but I stand by my beliefs about new-hire RJ F/O's at $56/hour by ANYONE and the economic smarts of anyone who'd do that in this competitive reality, let alone the likely future.

As far as your admonition that I "stick to flying airplanes", you do more then just that, no ? Don't you post opinion here as well that many might disagree with ? In fact, with 6,000 additional posts in only 2 more years of forum presence then myself, I'd say that's one who is quite active in forum discussion and the conveyence of personal opinion and not just moderation duties. Implying I should refrain from considering the potential unpleasant realities of the near future simply because you may disagree with them, well........that smacks of self-superiority and gives the impression you apparently believe your opinions here are somehow more worthy and valid then those you may disagree with as apparently I should keep quiet, vacate the forum and just go back to my job, yet you suggest no such limitations to continue posting your own hypothisis and opinion.

I get the message.

 

My point is that instead of hopelessly chasing larger and larger RJ's, AA MAY be about to pole-vault over that and go straight to the regional scale mainline-sized Airbus (A319Neo) or Boeing (737Max) and reap the reward of an additional 30-50 seats of revenue with almost all of it being pure profit over that of the typical mixed-class 90-seater at 76-82 seats.

That dynamic could change the entire domestic landscape.

 

Yep, but going to 125 seats from 50, 70 (64 mixed-class) or even 90 (76-82 mixed-class), might indeed make sense. The key is to get glorified regional labor costs with slightly higher hourly wages then RJ's but basically regional scheduling and work rules and 401(k)'s.

The first hogs to do that will snort their way back to the trough on the backs of pilots once again. AA may be about to make that happen and be the first (and thus fattest) hogs in that trough. Certain other hogs will envy the glottonous ravaging they witness and will be snorting and carrying on until they too can bury their snouts as deep as possible and gorge themselves to the bursting point.

It's going to be a fabulous decade to be a hog in the airline business. Not so good to be a pilot though.