And so it begins... XJT stole SKYW's flying

M

meritflyer

Well-Known Member
In ORD tonight coming in from Europe, I got talking to three SKYW pilots. One was an 8 year CA and other two newer FOs. They were talking about how ExpressJet stole their flying in SLC and now ORD.

They threw out every option that they could give XJT such as blocked allies, denied jumpseats, stepping on radios. These guys had serious hatred. At first it was fuuny to listen to but it got quite malicious. The XJT planes would suffer from poor baggage handeling to the rest of the items. It was these guys mission to make sure the new Mesa (by underbidding everyone else) would feel the pain.

Sad really.
 
If you didn't fly Southerjets. I'm going to stab you twice. First for not supporting the "home team" and again for not sharing a cocktail with me when you're in PHX.
 
meritflyer said:
In ORD tonight coming in from Europe, I got talking to three SKYW pilots. One was an 8 year CA and other two newer FOs. They were talking about how ExpressJet stole their flying in SLC and now ORD.

They threw out every option that they could give XJT such as blocked allies, denied jumpseats, stepping on radios. These guys had serious hatred. At first it was fuuny to listen to but it got quite malicious. The XJT planes would suffer from poor baggage handeling to the rest of the items. It was these guys mission to make sure the new Mesa (by underbidding everyone else) would feel the pain.

Sad really.
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Love how the non-union pilots are going deny union pilots a union negotiated item.
 
Wait. How can XJT steal flying that wasn't even awarded to Skywest? If anything, they "stole" Mesa's flying.....
 
Economy west is ok because I want to eat and crash out, but I've only flown economy east once. Having a baby in the row in front of me and chatty Cathy's working the mid galley, I was fairly close to commiting a felony.
 
Captain_Bob said:
Most "competetive" bid does not equal "lowest" bid.

;)
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Those OO guys are a little off kilter with their hatred. Kind of stupid really, like they really have a say what goes on.

This isn't a union thing vs. non-union thing. Fact is, the bid that XJet came in with was considerably lower than other airlines. They pretty much bid to cover only half the cost of each lease on the airplanes to be used for this flying.

Nothing wrong with it, they needed to find a way to stop bleeding cash, and this was it. They provide a great product but they won't be making money on this deal.
 
stuckingfk said:
Those OO guys are a little off kilter with their hatred. Kind of stupid really, like they really have a say what goes on.

This isn't a union thing vs. non-union thing. Fact is, the bid that XJet came in with was considerably lower than other airlines. They pretty much bid to cover only half the cost of each lease on the airplanes to be used for this flying.

Nothing wrong with it, they needed to find a way to stop bleeding cash, and this was it. They provide a great product but they won't be making money on this deal.
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I guess what I'm trying to figure out is... where exactly you are seeing that we lowball'd everyone on the bid in such a way to actually lose money.

I wonder why we are reactivating the XM radio in all aircraft that will be flying under UAL colors too... must be taking a loss on that as well. ;)

The cash bleeding that you are referring too is no longer existent... Had we done nothing more but continue our contract with CAL (which would most likely have resulted in a few more furloughs) then we would not be in the red much longer since we've streamlined our operations. You can easily see that trend via the Quarterly Reports.

NEW YORK, Nov 17 (Reuters) - ExpressJet Holdings (XJT.N) surged for a second day on Tuesday after an analyst noted that the airline's new partnership with United Airlines would help the company be profitable by mid-2010.

"Cost efficiencies should push overall XJT results to profitability by 2Q '10," Avondale Partners analyst Bob McAdoo wrote in a note. He expects the company to log a 2009 loss of $1.72 per share, but a profit of 47 cents in 2010.

United parent UAL Corp (UAUA.O) said Monday that ExpressJet would operate regional flights under the United Express banner starting in May 2010.

In a regulatory filing, ExpressJet said the arrangement will have an initial term of three years for 11 aircraft and two years for the remaining 11 planes.

ExpressJet, once a subsidiary of Continental Airlines (CAL.N), is using planes from its corporate aviation division for the United deal. United will also receive warrants for 2.7 million ExpressJet shares.

"XJT has had surplus pilots and surplus mechanic hours available beyond the minimums required for the CAL service," McAdoo wrote. "As such we believe that XJT will be able to fly the new hours for UAUA without hiring additional personnel."

Regional airlines typically earn between 5 and 12 percent operating margins in these deals even when their larger partners struggle, McAdoo wrote.

ExpressJet was up 11 percent at $4.01 and was the No. 2 percentage gainer on the New York Stock Exchange around midday. The Arca Airline Index and broader stock market were slightly down.
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How does everyone make the wild jump from "streamlined, efficient operation, competitively priced" to "bottom of the barrel, flying at a loss", bidder?

I know it seems hard to believe in this economic environment... but don't you think that it's possible folks are looking for a good quality product, fairly priced vs. just the "cheapest" product?

Just curious.

Bob

(I'm really trying to cut back on my kool-aid intake... I swear it. ;))
 
Meh, don't let a few sore losers ruin it for everyone else. These types are at every airline and we all know it. Move on, next thread.
 
kellwolf said:
Wait. How can XJT steal flying that wasn't even awarded to Skywest? If anything, they "stole" Mesa's flying.....
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Again, in their heads all flying should rightfully go to the premier 70-90 seat airlines.

Now that Mesa is getting axed (or is it asked?) and Republic is preoccupied destr, um, rearranging Midwest, logic would have it that Skywest would get the golden ticket. Unfortunately for them Spock is not in charge of Express Carriers at Yo-nited.
 
It's impossible for a better paid/compensated pilot group to undercut a lower paid pilot group.

But a few loud toolbags don't define an entire pilot group. I'm sure xjet has some too.

Captain_Bob said:

(I'm really trying to cut back on my kool-aid intake... I swear it. ;))
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Please don't, at least not when you're right!

kool-aid-man.jpg
 
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