Airlines

Category Archives for Airlines.

American Airlines Plans To Buy More Planes As Soon As They “Start Growing Again”

by Gary Leff

american plane
Apr 18 2021

Last week American converted 5 Boeing 787-8s on order to larger 787-9s and deferred those to 2023 when 25 of those aircraft are slated to begin delivery.

Late in the week CEO Doug Parker gave additional context on the carrier’s thinking on future aircraft orders at an internal employee event, a recording of which was reviewed by View From The Wing. Since American has just retired planes, when they’re ready to grow they’re going to need to buy new planes again since the ones they have on order larger just replace aircraft they’ve gotten rid of.

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United Airlines Will Restore Seat Back Video To Older Aircraft

by Gary Leff

united-planes-runway
Apr 16 2021

As American Airlines removes the very last of its seat back video screens on Boeing 737 aircraft United Airlines has shared internally that it will go in the opposite direction.

United was already adding seat back video screens to new Boeing 737s and now will retrofit older aircraft so that passengers have screens at their seats, according to an internal video shared with employees.

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American Airlines May Draft Flight Attendants To Return To Work

by Gary Leff

Apr 16 2021

After paying flight attendants not to work during the pandemic, thanks to government subsidies, American Airlines plans to fly more than 90% of the seats they flew domestically in the summer of 2019 this summer, and 80% of the seats they flew internationally.

American recalled all of their flight attendants from furlough to work these flights Even then that’s not enough.

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Delta Now Enthusiastically Supports Government Subsidies, Industrial Policy

by Gary Leff

Apr 15 2021

Delta Air Lines has plenty of cash. They never furloughed any employees. Travel is recovering and they’re expecting to return to profitability this summer. They’re even making large bonus payments to management employees.

Against this backdrop, Hunter Keay from Wolfe Research asked Delta CEO Ed Bastian during the airline’s earnings call whether they would turn down ‘PSP3’ the third government airline bailout that will offer them about $3 billion in exchange for continuing to pay employees through September.

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Delta Dunks On Southwest Airlines Devaluation, Says Not Considering Reducing Value Of SkyMiles

by Gary Leff

Mary Schlangenstein who covers airlines for Bloomberg asked CEO Ed Bastian during Delta’s earnings call about Southwest’s no-notice 6.5% devaluation of Rapid Rewards points yesterday and whether they’d considering doing something similar.

Bastian offered SkyMiles as a contrast to Southwest, “we’re not considering that, and we’re very excited about the value [of the SkyMiles program].” Wait, wut?

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Why Outrage Is The Right Reaction To Southwest’s No-Notice Devaluation

by Gary Leff

southwest uniforms
Apr 15 2021

If it’s true that we shouldn’t trust loyalty programs, and that ought to become our base case, then the way that information gets out to the public is precisely by shaming loyalty programs when they behave badly. Rather than shrugging our shoulders at no-notice devaluations, it is important to shout it from the rooftops so that members know to build lack of trust into their base case.

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Department Of Justice Is Ramping Up Its Investigation Of The American Airlines – JetBlue Partnership

by Gary Leff

jfk art
Apr 14 2021

The Department of Transportation approved the American Airlines-JetBlue alliance in New York and Boston. Those airlines had to give up takeoff and landing slots in New York, and commit to increase their flying (or lose more slots).

However it’s a new administration and other airlines aren’t happy with the increased competition JetBlue and American will provide. So the Department of Justice is ramping up a probe of the deal, taking another bite at the apple for special interests.

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