Why are commuter flights so expensive?

Colin W Kingsbury wrote:



Second is the issue of cost structure. No matter how you look at it, running
an airline is a hellish business. It's as capital-intensive as real estate,
only your main assets are always depreciating. Operating costs are
astounding, and not easily adjusted. Pilots, mechanics, FAs, gate leases,
etc. all add up very quickly, and it takes years to adjust the formula. So
newcomers will always have the advantage because they built their business
models around last year's conditions, and not the last decade's. But come
ten years from now those newcomers could be in just as bad shape.

Look at Southwest. They are doing it right. All the people really want
is a seat at the cheapest possible rate. We don't need your fancy clubs
and we certainly don't care about boarding the plane 5 minutes before
everybody else. Just get to my destination when you say you will and be
friendly about it.

Interestingly for us, the future is in some ways headed in our
direction. Regional jets are replacing not only the Saab 340s and Dash 8s,
but MD-80s and DC-9s as well. Many of the new airlines have all-RJ fleets
from the ground up.


That's because an airline pilot just isn't worth $175K per year.
Period. Get a jumpseat ride in an RJ and you'll see a 7 year can fly
one. When the computer voice says 10 feet pull the power and the nose
up and you land. There's nothing to do anymore. Which is good, that's
what makes it safe.

"Newps" wrote in message
...

Look at Southwest. They are doing it right.


I agree, but the problem is that Southwest cannot serve the whole country
and sustain its business model. They exist by operating direct service on a
very narrow range of routes. This is why you do not see SWA flying in and
out of BOS, LGA, or any number of other extremely high-volume airports.

All the people really want
is a seat at the cheapest possible rate. We don't need your fancy clubs
and we certainly don't care about boarding the plane 5 minutes before
everybody else.

Well, I used to fly upwards of 100,000 miles a year, rarely going two weeks
without at least one trip. When you do that you get to spend a lot of time
waiting for missed connections and weather delays, and the clubs really do
help. It's one thing to put up with the cattle call a few times a year but
every week? You'd go mad.

Likewise, the early boarding offers one key benefit: guaranteed overhead
luggage bin space. This meant (a) I could save time by carrying all my
luggage and (b) still be comfortable by not having to put a bag under the
seat. Like I said, when you do it constantly, it really adds up.

With times being tough the past few years, companies were free to force
their traveling employees to eat a lot of s--t and fly only the cheapest
available fares. As conditions improve this will change. Good employees will
demand better accomodations or they will quit. This is why I think Airtran
has been very smart to offer Business Class seating at reasonable prices. I
used to run a team of consultants and was always willing to spend a little
more to make the trip easier on them. As for the client, I would explain
that they were paying $1800 a day for the consultant's time, so they ought
to be willing to spend a few hundred more to make sure that nice fellow
showed up refreshed and ready to work, not chewed up and spit out.

IMHO we need to weed the 6 majors (UA, US, AA, DL, NW, CO) down to three or
four, probably by allowing some of the mergers that would have been
unthinkable previously. UA, US, and DL are all sick men and I expect them to
look nothing like they do today within a few years. I do not expect US to
survive at all and do not understand how UA has managed to avoid going back
into bankruptcy.

-cwk.

"Colin W Kingsbury" wrote
I agree, but the problem is that Southwest cannot serve the whole country
and sustain its business model.

Then maybe the portions of the country that can't be served by that
busiess model have to pay a lot more. Or maybe the hub-and-spoke
model is outdated. In fact, maybe it was never a good model in the
first place, and was only used because certain costs (airport/highway
expansion, air traffic control) could be externalized. Maybe the
future is in large numbers of smaller airplanes (737 and down) flying
point-to-point routes.

Like I said, when you do it constantly, it really adds up.

It sure does. I used to travel on business regularly, and I hated
Southwest. Just realize that the business traveller of old is an
endangered species, which is making the old style airlines hurt.

With times being tough the past few years, companies were free to force
their traveling employees to eat a lot of s--t and fly only the cheapest
available fares.

Yup.

As conditions improve this will change. Good employees will
demand better accomodations or they will quit.

You're kidding yourself. This is the economy we can look forward to
for years. Think jobless recovery.

This is why I think Airtran
has been very smart to offer Business Class seating at reasonable prices.

I doubt it. I think the Southwest model is the future - one class.
One might even say no class.

IMHO we need to weed the 6 majors (UA, US, AA, DL, NW, CO) down to three or
four

Which will happen, I can assure you.

probably by allowing some of the mergers that would have been
unthinkable previously.

And what good will that do? The fundamental problem isn't too many
players - it's too much capacity. The business traveler isn't coming
back. He's doing his job by remote control, usually via phone and
internet - and usually from Bangalore.

Michael