I believe Kaye was the 170 (CAL EWR) S-T at the time. The number of positions lost in EWR was well over 100 in just the 737 CA BES... going from over 500 to well under 400 before all was said and done. Some of those were due to the contraction that created 148 system wide furloughs, but most of it was flying being shifted from EWR to IAH. I didn't believe business decisions like that could be based on hurt feelings until I heard it directly from someone in management, who also said it was costing us millions per year in hotel rooms alone.

It sucks to see any base contracting because of the human cost to those living there, but IAH is apparently not where the money is now. I don't get it either, it's a large population center in a market we dominate, but unlike the move of flying out of EWR, this is not a punitive decision.

 

That's a bit of a myth .. it's essentially a break even situation.

" In January 2017, the California Legislative Analyst’s Office said by several measures California is, indeed, a donor state, but just barely. It receives $0.99 in federal expenditures per dollar of taxes paid"

 

"Texas is a "tax donor state"; in 2005, for every dollar Texans paid to the federal government in federal income taxes, the state got back about $0.94 in benefits.[167] To attract business, Texas has incentive programs worth $19 billion per year (2012); more than any other US state.[171][172]"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas

 

a Radio show just said Houston just edged out Chicago to the number 3 spot in population. Most of the normal websites don't show it yet, but this radio guy had a census type person on the show talking about population growth trends, demographics, and such.

Evidently some townships not formerly considered as a part of Houston are now as such. Conroe, Texas is north of IAH. Now the fastest growing city in America, in the fastest growing county (Montgomery). I am told Conroe is now considered a part of Houston for census purposes.

 

The general definition of a "city" generally means a certain population density. The only true "big" city in the US is New York, with Chicago being second. Depending on how big you draw the rings, you can take a bunch of areas in the US and call them the second biggest city.

Houston is a big suburb. So are most of our "cities". Making the "rings" bigger for bragging rights really doesn't mean anything.

 

There will be no bumps. Just attrition.

 

Dang dude....

Why do you have to keep bringing up the things that we told them weren't true?

 

Idk. Seeing it written makes me LOL. I'm easily amused.

 

Yeah me too...

 

Expressing one's schadenfreude on this matter is poor form. I don't recall anyone expressing those feelings when DEN lost the 756. We've all been in this business long enough to know a regional economic downturn could happen to any of our bases. And when we have a national downturn, this will happen at all of our bases, except the bottom of the list will probably end up on the streets.