What's up with the possibilities of recalls in NOV. Does anyone know about this, or is just a Craig-list rumor under personals.

 

I would say unlikely. I am hoping for that myself but I am assuming if they were able to cover the summer with about 400 pilots, they should be able to cover winter since winter is not quite as busy as summer.

However there may be a tiny amount of attrition toward overseas jobs, and from other factors that would require just a couple of peeps. In addition, if crew scheduling will cry them a river, they may be more willing to call a few more back compared to summer levels, because this time they don't have to worry about furlough, since those A320s are coming soon after the winter season is over.

So that said, I would give it a less than 50% chance. We will find out in October.

 

I also wonder if the Fed's are putting pressure on schedules that contain 3 or more red-eyes on a sequence. I hope adjusting for that results in recalls.

 

Some aren't even red eyes. The DTW-LAS are turns . Blocked at 7:58 all backside of the clock. I guess the winds during the summer make it possible. BUt I'll do anything to get back to DTW

 

Virgin makes its FLL entry...

Virgin America announces new daily, nonstop service from Fort Lauderdale to L.A., San Francisco
First non-stop flight to San Francisco from Fort Lauderdale

Low-cost airline Virgin America today announced plans to launch daily, nonstop service from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to two California destinations this fall.

Beginning Nov. 18, the carrier will fly two routes to San Francisco and Los Angeles seven days a week, airline spokeswoman Abby Lunardini said. Introductory fares as low as $99 each way from Fort Lauderdale to both cities are available online, she said. Virgin also will offer connecting flights from Fort Lauderdale to Las Vegas, Orange County, Calif., Seattle and San Diego.

The San Francisco-based company, which marked its second anniversary last week, has been recognized in the travel industry for low-cost air service, upscale cabin amenities and top-flight entertainment.

Virgin's expansion to Fort Lauderdale comes as most airlines are cutting back the routes they serve, particularly to leisure destinations. Virgin's nonstop flights to San Francisco International airport this fall will be the first for Fort Lauderdale, Airport Aviation Director Kent George said.

Virgin's expansion to South Florida will mean new competition for Miramar-based low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Both currently serve passengers with one daily nonstop flight to Los Angeles. It also fills a void left by American Airlines, which discontinued its twice-daily service to Los Angeles last September.

"All folks traveling out of here like nonstop, point-to-point service," George said. "It'll be an attractive option."

Virgin now offers more than 100 daily flights to nine destinations from its hub.

"The South Florida market has always been at the top of our list," Lunardini said. The Fort Lauderdale airport will draw Virgin passengers from throughout the three-county region and will serve fliers year-round.

"We feel like the demand is definitely there to support the routes," Lunardini said.

Virgin's new Airbus A-319 and A-320 aircraft feature mood-lit cabins, custom-designed leather seats and power outlets. Virgin passengers have Wi-Fi Internet access on every flight and each seat is outfitted with a video touch-screen and remote control with a choice of 25 films, live TV, video games, seat-to-seat chat and on-demand food ordering.

The A-319s, likely to be the aircraft servicing Fort Lauderdale, have 122 seats. Passengers have three cabin classes: the main cabin, business class and first class. Introductory fares between Fort Lauderdale and Los Angeles and San Francisco for premium seating starts at $499 each way. First-class tickets start at $849 each way and feature seats that recline to a near horizontal position.

Airline expansion: Virgin America announces new daily, nonstop service from Fort Lauderdale to California -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

 

Regarding Virgin coming to FLL.

This announcment, and JetBlue's build up in south FL prove two things to me.

First, Spirit's market analysis is solid. Otherwise those other carriers wouldn't be trying to enter that market.

Second, Spirit is vulnerable because of customer service issues.

In other words, Spirit correctly identified a market, but incorrectly identified customer expectations in that market.

We can only hope that BBB is able to recognize this reality and react in time to hold on to some of our customers.

We all enjoy company bashing, but our paycheck doesn't come from ALPA. We all need to do everything possible to treat the people in our aircraft as we would treat our family.

 

Looks like we may lose the race to get airplanes as well, VA is eyeballing F9 busses. We need to step it up in FLL and places like MCO, or get eaten by JetBlue and VA


Report: Virgin America eyes Frontier Airlines' Airbus fleet: bizjournals.com Business News - MSN Money

 

Good post A320Flyer...Thanks for the article.

We all know that NK is following a business model that works quite well overseas. It will be interesting to see how this model holds up under competition here in the US and Latin America. OVER THE LONG TERM, here is the question: Will the customer prefer the nickel-and-dime approach (NK), or will they want the amenities other carriers offer that have been lost industry wide in the past couple of decades?

My biggest concern is that NK has a habit of pulling out of markets or reducing frequencies when FORCED to compete with others (Providence, Islip, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Denver...just to name a few).

Let's hope BBB is right and that NK can compete on "price alone" over the long term...

 

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Last I had looked at a LAX-FLL ticket on Spirit it was $135 each way. Now if we start flying that route in the spring again here is what you would see on expedia. Virgin after taxes, around $1060 round trip. Spirit after taxes and booking fees, around $310 w/o a checked bag. I don't know that is a pretty wicked price competition. Even if the tickets went up to $300 each way, a $400 difference is HUGE!!!

Lets just say on Spirit you pay $500 round trip, compared to $1060 on virgin. How about a family of 4 on Spirit you pay $2000, on Virgin you are looking somewhere in the neighborhood of $4240. Thats $2240 difference. Ouch. They will each be vying for a different consumer base.