What really matters when things go wrong:

[Sopwith]

I see a lot of chatter about delayed flights due to weather, etc. When you've done a lot of flying you begin to figure out what really matters to the airlines when things go sideways. It isn't the passengers. It isn't the money. It isn't their reputation or their on-time record. What matters most, and often the ONLY thing that matters is where they need the airplane to be next. This drives the whole system and overrides everything else.

 

Airline schedules have zero float time to allow for delays, so it is critical that they get back on schedule quickly. Only then will they turn their minds to helping the affected passengers.

 

So, when things go wrong, it is impossible to predict with any certainty what the airline will do, unless you can figure out where they need the plane to be next, and guess at what they might do to get it there.

[kelmac]

"If you want to be a millionaire, start with a billion dollars, and buy an airline"

 

This is very difficult business! Airlines have been loosing money for years. People just won't fly unless the tickets are cheap--a real catch 22 for this business. Everything about the airline industry is expensive, except the ticket prices. Southwest does it with low pay for executives, moderate pay for everyone else, their airplanes are in the air all day long, and they have a loyal happy work force.

 

Kel