I don't buy that it was purely oil that caused XJT's downfall in the Branded world. XJT had 70% their fuel hedged at $2.32 per gallon - far below the industry average. You can play the 'what if' game all day long but the reality is, their business model was not constructed for endurance which is, in the business world, poor visibility and execution.
If you want to take a realistic look at why the operation failed, I believe you'll conclude it's was combo of excessive variable costs, expensive/inefficient airplanes, and low demand. You can argue load factors all day long but XJT's yields were sub par however, XJT couldn't command the fare they needed to survive and still support the volume. To even discuss load factors without yields is like making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich without the jelly. Even after XJT used their large cash position to fund the majority of it's capital expenses, it still lost $20-30M a quarter.
Ream said at his recent employee roadshow, they couldn't charge enough to bear the costs of doing business. When they tried to up prices, they saw demand fall dramatically. I was a huge proponent of XJT's success based on the notion they could command a supportive asking price for their service, fuel was hedged, service was superior, and convenience was perceptible (i.e. no stop overs, meals, and smaller city pairings).
However, as their business plan/model unfolded it simply didn't work for several reasons including the aforementioned items. Competitors continually picked off routes, engaged in negative advertising, and practiced predatory pricing. The airline simply couldn't compete. I will stand with the always positive Bob though on the notion that XJT was one of the best service oriented airlines ever.
