Will Usair Make It?

[Rudy]

Nope, Management hasn't changed.

I had a 3 day trip leaving on New Years Eve. I also had vacation on New Year's Day. I had the following conversation with 3 different managers,

"This is Captain XXX and I hear you are short of crews for the holidays and I'd like to help. How about taking back my New Year's vacation and I'll fly the entire holiday".

No.

"Why not"

We don't take back vacation unless it's seven days or more.

"Then how about moving it 2 days and I'll still fly the holiday"

No.

"Why not"

We don't move vacation either unless it's seven days or more.

"You mean to tell me that I'm a senior Captain asking you to fly New Year's Eve, New Year's day, and the day after and you say NO even though you are short staffed"

Correct.
______________

This is why we're doomed to failure....just plain dumb and stupid management.

Signed,

Twenty five thousand flying hours and not 10 cents worth of damage to anything or anyone. I've done my job!

 

[SpinDoc]

Will US Airways make it?

Yes. Here are several reasons why:

1. Labor contracts have been brought into line
with creditor and ATSB requirements.

2. The majority of the employees want the
company to make it and will do whatever it
takes to win back the customers.

3. GE Capital has a large sum of money tied
up in US and would rather take a small profit
or no profit for a few years going forward,
than taking posession of a large number of
planes and other assets that are next to
impossible to re-market in the same amount
of time.

4. The ATSB is willing to work with the
company.

While US will certainly make it, be ready for
some major changes in senior management in
the next two months. The money men have
done their job in lowering wages and
renegotiating with creditors. Now it's time for
the BOD to bring in some operational wizards
who know how to maximize the assets and
formulate a return for the creditors and new
investors who will be providing the exit
financing.

 

[justaumechanic]

Will US Airways make it?

Yes. Here are several reasons why:

1. Labor contracts have been brought into line
with creditor and ATSB requirements.

2. The majority of the employees want the
company to make it and will do whatever it
takes to win back the customers.

3. GE Capital has a large sum of money tied
up in US and would rather take a small profit
or no profit for a few years going forward,
than taking posession of a large number of
planes and other assets that are next to
impossible to re-market in the same amount
of time.

4. The ATSB is willing to work with the
company.

While US will certainly make it, be ready for
some major changes in senior management in
the next two months. The money men have
done their job in lowering wages and
renegotiating with creditors. Now it's time for
the BOD to bring in some operational wizards
who know how to maximize the assets and
formulate a return for the creditors and new
investors who will be providing the exit
financing.

[post="237748"][/post]​

You know what you are right.

The sun will come up and everything will be blue skies ahead.

Everyone is wrong and you are right.

 

[Iflyem]

The only way this place survives is for the employees to believe and trust their leadership. That is not going to happen as long as the Alabama gang is here! 🙁

[post="237717"][/post]​

The orchestra is tuning up, and the fat lady will sing by the end of January :down:

 

[deano]

You know what you are right.

The sun will come up and everything will be blue skies ahead.

Everyone is wrong and you are right.

[post="237751"][/post]​

Too many things have happened to get past them. Why would the flying public, who very well know how U treats it's employees expect to be treated any differently, they are very leery of U at best with most having already considered U dead and giving other airlines their business. It's no longer an "internal" thing. The cancer has ventured outside, it has become an airborne pathogen and the flying public is running from the pestilence. Wake Up! Get Real, It’s Over.

Have A Nice Life….Curt

 

[Aryeh]

Probably not.
Like the sayings go, such as:
"you can put lipstick on a pig, but it'll still be pig."
The company can tout all kinds of new business plans that just replace the old, and once touted, business plans. But internally and essentially, things really remain much the same. They can rightsize, put people first, and on and on, but most everything that changes is cosmetic or impacts employees income. The company in essence, remains largely unchanged. Same management for the most part, same poor communications, agents who are poorly trained, procedures which exist on paper but rarely practiced due to staffing or concern. The day-to-day things are as they always have been.

 

[SpinDoc]

Too many things have happened to get past them. Why would the flying public, who very well know how U treats it's employees expect to be treated any differently, they are very leery of U at best with most having already considered U dead and giving other airlines their business. It's no longer an "internal" thing. The cancer has ventured outside, it has become an airborne pathogen and the flying public is running from the pestilence. Wake Up! Get Real, It’s Over.

Have A Nice Life….Curt

[post="237758"][/post]​

Cav:

I think you are underestimating the consumer.
We have many market segments that can affect
the viability of the company going forward.
They are:

1. The frequent business traveler who typically
has an investment in the company with their
mileage and upgrade status. Many of these
consumers are loyal and will continue to
purchase tickets. They read between the lines
of the alarmist media and generally will stick
with US until the doors close.

2. The once or twice a year traveler who
has no loyalty to any carrier. These people
may see the news, but their attention span
is so short, they will buy tickets if the price
is right, no matter what.

3. The captive consumer. These customers
are composed of those who have very few
choices for travel from their home airport,
which just happens to be served by US.
They will continue to use US because it is
not convenient for them to travel 2 or more
hours to the nearest hub city.

4. Believe it or not, many of our customers have
flown on other carriers such as UA, NW, CO,
DL, AA, and WN and they may have had a bad
experience once or twice. They will stick with
US just to avoid flying on the other carriers.
Even with the alarmist media in full force,
many customers will still avoid the other
carriers because of their bad experiences.

The pie is large for airline customers and
US will find a way to attract new customers
if necessary. Just because we live the events
that the alarmist media portrays does not
mean that 100% of the U.S. population has
seen a news story about it.

Perspective is something that needs to be
considered when making all encompassing
statements such as yours.

 

[sentrido]

the business flyers i work with and am now one of will never go near us again. they dont seem to care about the finacial state of the airline, they are just sick of waiting for thier bags. im not talking abaout the holiday incedent either.

 

[sfb]

1. The frequent business traveler who typically
has an investment in the company with their
mileage and upgrade status. Many of these
consumers are loyal and will continue to
purchase tickets. They read between the lines
of the alarmist media and generally will stick
with US until the doors close.

Sure. And the company is running this Dividend Miles 20th Anniversary Promotion which essentially gives away the store for what reason? You could make Silver Preferred flying PHL-BDL GoFares for what, $350? And the company offered E-Savers in 37 markets from CLT and 27 markets from PHL because the bookings are so strong, right?

2. The once or twice a year traveler who
has no loyalty to any carrier. These people
may see the news, but their attention span
is so short, they will buy tickets if the price
is right, no matter what.

Let me see if I have this right. The company is banking on offering the lowest fares out there even though there's no way the costs are going to come down enough to make those tickets profitable. You're going to charge WN/B6/FL/NK fares even though your costs will STILL be higher (in spite of USA320Pilot's pontifications). Explain to us, in light of the company's 3rd quarter numbers, how they intend to get mainline CASM down from 11.59 cents/mile to below 8 (and remember labor is only 4.76 cents/mile).

3. The captive consumer. These customers
are composed of those who have very few
choices for travel from their home airport,
which just happens to be served by US.
They will continue to use US because it is
not convenient for them to travel 2 or more
hours to the nearest hub city.

You're kidding me, right? This is the same strategy that has been so disastrous for US Airways for the last decade. Got low-cost competition coming in? Gouge the customers who don't have a choice but to fly US. Guess what? US is running out of places to hide. And Delta's route network, now offering SimpliFares, reaches most of the cities and towns of any consequence served by US. If you jack up the fares high enough, people darn well will drive to save a couple hundred bucks! And if you keep this pricing strategy up, it will attract the LCC's to every single remaining market that can support more than one or two mainline flights per day. Or Delta will throw in some RJ's and undercut you on price.

4. Believe it or not, many of our customers have
flown on other carriers such as UA, NW, CO,
DL, AA, and WN and they may have had a bad
experience once or twice. They will stick with
US just to avoid flying on the other carriers.
Even with the alarmist media in full force,
many customers will still avoid the other
carriers because of their bad experiences.

And how many of your customers "had a bad experience once or twice" over Christmas? I cannot argue that you have passengers who are probably loyal enough that they'd tattoo the US Airways flag on their chest, but the company has also destroyed a lot of goodwill.

The pie is large for airline customers and
US will find a way to attract new customers
if necessary. Just because we live the events
that the alarmist media portrays does not
mean that 100% of the U.S. population has
seen a news story about it.

Yes, it is, but the amount of pricing pressure from competitors with lower costs than US will only continue to intensify. If management had taken more substantive steps to lower structural costs instead of its usual "beat-on-the-unions" m.o., I'd be more optimistic about the company's future. But from this observer's viewpoint, it looks like just more of the same.

The company's non-labor, non-fuel mainline CASM was 5.8 cents in November -- identical to the 3rd quarter in spite of the company's supposed cost-cutting efforts. Labor CASM was down 0.79 cents -- or 17% -- with the emergency cuts. And the solution going forward is more high-cost RJ's?!?!?!

 

[PITbull]

Yea, I believe if USAirways makes it through this month...then its clear all the way.

There is no way that the ATSB wants to eat $900 million in loan guarantees, and GE would rather have some potential profits on their billions of lease and lending money...than "0".

RSA is in it to. Broner has a bigger ego that President Bush.

He wants to come out smelling good andsuccessful in thier plan to get their labor costs to rock bottom.

Yea, we'll be staying. The'll be more "bailing out" money.