PlaneBuzz

While we wait for Gustav to make landfall, and hope that Holly's family remains safe and sound, we also need to consider the impact of the hurricane on the oil and energy industry. This graphic from NOAA reminds us of the sheer number of energy-drilling platforms, most now evacuated, situated in the northern Gulf of Mexico -- almost 4,000 active platforms. What we don't see here is the shore-based infrastructure. Pipelines, terminals, and refineries along the coast are going to be hit as well.

We don't know how bad it's going to be yet, but there's likely to be a hit at the gas pump for drivers and airlines alike nationwide in the coming days.

Another note as the hurricane approaches, Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans discontinued flight operations at 6:00 PM Central time. Following some of the discussion over at Airliners.net, many airlines ran extra flights and used larger planes to assist in evacuations. AirTran, American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, Sun Country, US Airways, and other airlines all contributed to the flight exodus efforts.

Posted by Jonathan at 8:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I am happy to report that PlaneDad has arrived at the Worldwide Headquarters in exile -- although it took him more than 14 hours to get here. Normally? That trip would probably take about 7 or 8.

All I can say is this: If, when I am 89 years old, I can get into a car and drive for 14 hours straight after no sleep for a day -- and not end up in a ditch somewhere -- I will consider my life a success.

Yes, he's now asleep.

Meanwhile, the report from the real Worldwide Headquarters is that neighbors have banded together, compared contents of refrigerators and freezers, amounts of gasoline in gas cans, number of generators, and and are now hunkered down for the duration.

Talk to you later.

Posted by Holly at 8:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sleep? What's that?

At 2:30 this morning my father, who lives in Slidell, Louisiana, called to tell me that he was "throwing in the towel." He had put what few things he could in his Toyota Corolla and was heading out. To where, he had no idea.

Apparently the exhortations of the local officials to get out, along with a further shift in the projected path of Gustav had convinced him that no, maybe he had best get the hell out of Dodge.

To put all of this in perspective, PlaneDad is 89 years old.

As late as yesterday evening, he had assured me that he had no intention of leaving. He was going to "ride it out." And, after all, how could he let all those frozen TV dinners in the freezer he had just picked up at the commissary go to waste?

Tonight, apparently, he finally decided that perhaps this was not the best course of action.

I fear that he is going to find himself stuck in hours of traffic as a result. This decision was made way too late. And yes, I am very worried about him being on the road in the middle of the night.

But at least I was able to convince him to go north and then west. Hopefully he will end up in DFW at some point, where friends Brad and Beth Bartholomew now have me as a house guest. Dad will be guest number two.

As for the rest of the PBB family -- they are still planning to "ride it out" in Covington, Louisiana at the Worldwide Headquarters.

All positive thoughts in that regard are strongly encouraged.

All for now -- from what is now officially the PBB Worldwide Headquarters -- in exile.

Posted by Holly at 4:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Unfortunately one of the ironic things about hurricanes is that as devastating as they are -- they are undeniably impressive to watch as they build in intensity. Here is a great shot that someone just sent me. You can clearly see the eye of Gustav as it moves over Cuba, and you can see also see his running mate Hanna -- right behind him.

To get the full effect, click here for the complete loop of the image.

Posted by Holly at 8:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As Yogi Berra supposedly said, "It's deja vu all over again."

Exactly three years ago yours truly was on "vacation" from our normal weekly publishing schedule for PlaneBusiness Banter when Hurricane Katrina decided to make a little visit to Southeast Louisiana.

It took us more than four months before things returned to something even close to "normal."

Today, I'm sitting here looking at what is now a Category 4 hurricane by the name of Gustav, which frankly, as of this posting, is on a track that is potentially much more dangerous to where our Worldwide Headquarters is located -- than was the case with the more Easterly track of Katrina. Remember - New Orleans came through Katrina just fine -- it was the levees that failed that caused the massive flooding of the city after the fact. Not the storm itself.

But the Mississippi Gulf Coast was wiped cleaned.

One always wants to be on the west side of a hurricane -- not the east or northeast side.

But today, that is exactly where it appears the Worldwide Headquarters is going to find itself.

On the good news side of the coin -- I am not at the Worldwide Headquarters. I am in Dallas.

As regular readers of PBB know, I have been looking at potential new Worldwide Headquarters locations in the DFW metropolitan area over the last couple of months, and while on "vacation" was also doing some work with folks here who are working on our new subscriber site.

I was scheduled to fly back to New Orleans this week. Not going to happen now.

The bad news is that David, who edits PBB, compiles our earnings summaries, and prepares our weekly graphs and charts, in addition to doing all of our subscriber relations is at the Worldwide Headquarters, along with Max the Cat, Mom Cat, Pitty Pat and Ernesto. Then there are the two hounds -- Bita and Esther. Then there are the back-up hard drives for PBB. My big desktop Mac. My HD television. My car. My pin-up photos of Herb. My clothes. My ....My.... stuff.

Can you tell I am just a little "over the edge" today?

Wait until tomorrow.

And Monday.

And Tuesday.

And Wednesday.

So -- just a head's up for PBB subscribers. Our 11th anniversary issue that was due to be published this week is looking like a rather "iffy" situation.

I'd be lying if I said anything different.

More later. I need to go try and convince my father, who is 89, that he needs to get in the car NOW, and get out of Southeast Louisiana.

As for David, he says he is going to stay and hold down the PlaneBusiness corporate fort and ad hoc animal shelter.

Shaking my head.

As for me -- send hard liquor.

Posted by Holly at 1:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm supposed to be on vacation.

However, a little something has cropped up in the Caribbean that has ripped my attention away from Hillary, Barack and Teddie. Much less Red Stripe beer and falafels. Oh, and then there is that little matter of the third anniversary of Katrina's visit coming up on Friday.

His name is Gustav.

Gustav meet the fine readers of PlaneBuzz.

Fine readers of PlaneBuzz, meet Gustav.

Just a little known fact for PlaneBuzz readers. If this track holds up, Hurricane Gustav will pass directly over the Worldwide Headquarters on Monday night.

I don't like the threat of these types of deja vu things. Katrina was enough. I have no desire to do this again.

I also don't like the National Weather Service deciding that Gustav is going to cross the breadth of the Gulf of Mexico -- the very warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico-- and not be more than a Category Two upon its arrival onshore either.

Nope. I don't buy it.

I decided this evening, or rather, a good friend of mine decided this evening, that a pitcher of margaritas was just the thing to while away the hours as we await more definitive news as to just where this storm decides to go.

And hey, don't look now, but there is another one, right behind Gustav. Same track.

I'm going back to finish off the margaritas.

Posted by Holly at 10:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

While perusing the local paper here yesterday I came upon a story about the service reductions going on at TUS. As earlier announced airline service reductions begin to appear in the current schedules, the manifestation of those cuts will be reduced passenger counts and service to fewer cities. Tucson Airport passenger numbers for July dipped 3% versus last year, and that's before any real reductions hit. As of of next week the list of cities served from TUS will shrink 41%, down to 18 cities.

The brunt of service reductions will occur at medium and smaller airports, like TUS, but even hub airports will feel a pinch. Phoenix Sky Harbor, long the nemesis of Tucson Airport, will see an 11% reduction in scheduled service during the 4th quarter of 2008. However it will still be a viable alternative to TUS, who will see a reduction of 26% for the upcoming quarter. Complicating matters a bit is the price of driving your own vehicle from TUS to PHX, not to mention the 2 hours out of your life (each way).

It will be interesting to see how airport managers react to the new reality of airline service. Long thought to be a "cost of doing business", in the era of charging for pillows and blankets airport operational costs are squarely on the airline's radar scope. The problem with some (most?) airports is that they are run like a bureaucracy, not a business. I, for one, don't choose an airport because of the cool artsy fartsy statues in the lobby or the facade of the terminal. If then air service is there at a price that makes sense, the restrooms are clean, and the baggage claim area roof doesn't leak, then I am a happy man.

Clearly this is an opportunity for some small and medium sized airports to actually grow, at the expense of those airports who fail to understand that their costs have a direct relationship to the level of air service at their facility. Airlines are parking airplanes and putting employees out on the street. Airports need to participate in the pain by tightening their belts and lowering their costs, or watching their service levels drop.

Posted by Godzilla at 3:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hi there, Godzilla here. It's been a while since I've posted (and even longer since I've said anything of real value), but more on that in a minute.

Further to Holly's observation about how the TSA "inspected" 9 airplanes right into the maintenance shop in Chicago, TSA is now rattling its saber about pursuing security violations against the airline.

The mind boggles.

A published report says that the inspector (obviously from the shallow end of the gene pool) was able to gain access to 7 of the 9 airplanes "inspected". Whether or not that is true is immaterial, because once the manner in which the airplanes were entered rendered them unairworthy anyway. The TSA further stated that it was not their intent to "cause delays or potential damage to aircraft as a result of our inspections," and that the agency acted quickly to "re-enforce education about sensitive equipment located on the exterior of a plane."

Yes, the TSA needs to reinforce the meaning of "No Step" when painted on an aircraft; perhaps an English class is in order?

I've been a bit quiet lately because I've been busily trying to secure some type of gainful employment that includes airplanes. It's come down to two choices, one being an FO for a Part 135 operation flying a Citation I, and the other being a pilot for the local Sheriff's department's version of Con Air. It's a tough choice, I must say. Neither of them pay very well, but it's better than working for a living. Either choice will still leave me time to contribute, hopefully more regularly, to Holly's blog.

Was that a sigh of relief or a groan?

Posted by Godzilla at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Funny how when you are on vacation you can read the headlines from the airline industry and just shake your head. Instead of hitting your head on the side of the nearest wall.

Holly here. Just checking in from IT central. Yes, PBB is in the middle of a major site reconstruction project. Tomorrow night I get to do a WebX walk-through with our programmers, who are in Australia. Today I get to go through about five tutorials and make notes.

Yippee.

Not my idea of the ideal vacation, but hey -- I'd rather be doing all this now -- than having to do it AND write about Mesa Air Group's earnings. (Or lack thereof.) Or about how United Airlines has come to the conclusion that eliminating food from some of its trans-Atlantic flights is a good idea. Or how a dufus TSA inspector in Chicago ended up damaging 9 American Eagle aircraft at O'Hare after he decided to see if he could climb on top of the parked aircraft in order to gain entry into them. Unfortunately, instead of using a ladder, said dufus TSA inspector apparently decided to use the aircraft's sensitive exterior probes to climb up on top. Specifically the TAT (Total Air Temperature) probe was selected as a foot hold. Or ....

You get the picture.

Have a great Thursday everyone!

Posted by Holly at 10:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Subscribers to PlaneBusiness Banter can access this week's issue here.

Posted by Holly at 8:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Yes, there are more!

Here are just a few of the creative Jake Brace Captions you sent to me Friday. I haven't even gleaned through all the Saturday offerings as of yet.

1. "We were this close to finishing the Continental merger when Big-Mouth Glenn blurts out he wants to manage the new company!!! I mean, BAM! it was just Glenn and me sitting in a room with 6 other empty swivel chairs a spinning..."

2."Tell them that the idea is to not necessarily kill the golden goose but to squeeze every last….oh, that’s been used?”

3. "What a bunch of saps! I can't believe how United's employees let me get away with filling my saddle bags with all this loot at their expense -- freaking unbelievable how they just stood there & took it lying down! A sucker is born every minute!"

4."No, it was Glenn who dropped the ball."

5."I am not a criminal."

6."No, I'm 'retiring'."

7."Believe you me, Glenn, crude oil will never be more than $50 a barrel."

8. "See this brown spot on the end of my nose?"

9. "Yes, I have to admit, we've succeeded in making our financials so hard to understand, nobody even understands how much money we're losing."

10. "Listen, I was surprised as you when Glenn said he would groom Doug instead of me."

My favorite of this bunch? Number one. And number ten. Stayed tuned for more!

Posted by Holly at 6:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just a good thing I figured out how to get back online yesterday (even if we're still having some hiccups). Just a few minutes into our Jake Brace Caption Contest, and I've already received the following:

"Oh, so that's what FUBAR means."

“I just want to choke the LIFE out of that damned ALPA.”

“Come on – pull all my fingers.”

"Well see, when my CFO Honorary Library is built, right when you come in the door, you'll see this huge marble wall, and there on the wall will be the words, "He Screwed More Employees Out of Their Pensions Than Any Other CFO."

"And then I said, "Glenn, we can pull this thing off. Trust me."

Keep them coming!

Posted by Holly at 11:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's the picture. You tell me what the caption should be. Either add to our comments below or send me a note directly.

Posted by Holly at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Interesting news crossing the wires this morning as United Airlines has announced that Jake Brace, long-time CFO, is "retiring" from the company on Nov. 1.

A couple of things. One this is great news. Should have happened a long time before now however.

Secondly, Kathy Michaels, the former head of IR at United, is going to succeed him. That is also good news.

Of course, no news like this is what it appears to be on the surface, and the obvious question hitting my email box this morning more or less runs around this theme -- did CEO Glenn Tilton finally push Jake out, in an attempt to put a lid on mounting calls for Glenn's dismissal?

Could be.

Or it could be that Jake has come to the conclusion that his days at United are numbered anyway -- and he might as well get out now, with a fat retirement/consulting package, before things get much worse.

Speaking of that no-doubt bloated "retirement/consulting" compensation package -- we, along with everyone else will be awaiting the details --when the company outlines the deal in an SEC filling.

Posted by Holly at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hello all. Holly here, back from the bowels of software hell.

I'm posting this in the wee hours of Thursday using a beta version of Ecto. For some strange reason, after I posted the last post on Glenn Tilton this week, my previous version of Ecto refused to access our blog anymore. Hmmm. Maybe the two are related.

Changing passwords didn't work. Then I thought we'd broken Movable Type, the software we use for PlaneBuzz itself, as we have been updating and changing system software on the trusty PBB server for the last week, as we prepare to start final edits to an entirely new PlaneBusiness software package that was just uploaded to our servers this week.

Eyeeee-EEEE.

My head hurts.

Notice it is 5:44 in the morning. Uh-huh.

So after Jonathan, our web guru, convinced me that MT was not the problem, I figured I'd try another web editor. So I downloaded Mars Edit, and after using it to do a couple of mock posts, I came to the conclusion I didn't like it either.

So then I went back to Ecto and downloaded their new beta version.

Presto.

It worked. Or at least it seems to be working.

Which is more than I can say for American Airlines. The airline once again finds itself on the wrong side of another PR mess this week.

More on that in just a bit.

I'm off to tinker a bit with this new toy.

Yes, I missed you guys too.

Posted by Holly at 4:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Posted by Holly at 3:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The pilots at United Airlines have decided to crank up their anger against Chairman and CEO Glenn Tilton a couple of few notches.

Monday the United Airlines' ALPA MEC issued a press release in which it  called for Tilton's resignation.

Fine. Except it's a bit late.

But in what is clearly now a new benchmark of new labor/management relations going forward utilizing the latest in Internet techonlogy,  the ALPA MEC also coupled the release with the announcement of a new website located with an apt Internet address: GlennTilton.com.

Visitors to the site can send Glenn an email, can send a complaint about customer service or airline experience, or merely occupy their time reading background blurbs on such topics as financial failures, strategic failures, and operational failures.

There is even a multiple choice quiz as to where members of the UAL board stay when in town for board meetings. This one was a no-brainer, though, as I figured they stayed where Glenn more or less lived for a long time. Yep. I was right. (I won't give the answer away -- I'll give you something to look forward to.)

I always like to think that we here at the PlaneBusiness Worldwide Headquarters are ahead of the curve. So I would humbly point out our Special "Glenn Tilton Self-Enrichment Award," which was bestowed upon Mr. Tilton and his close associates in 2006.

Technorati Tags: airline CEOs, airline unions, airlines, ALPA, Glenn Tilton, United Airlines

Posted by Holly at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

In the wee hours of this morning, analysts Jamie Baker and Mark Streeter of JP Morgan issued a huge upgrade of the airline sector. Not only were airline stocks upgraded, but the investment bank also upped its recommendation on airline credit.

From their research note this morning:

"We do not believe equities (or credit for that matter) have sufficiently responded to sharply lower fuel prices and resulting likelihood of profit resumption in 2009. Given the combination of improved non-fuel fundamentals, bolstered liquidity for many, and equity values meaningfully below March levels, we are significantly revising our estimates and equity/credit ratings for North American airlines."

The two then went on to explain:

"This Isn’t Just An Oil Call – Jet kero prices have plummeted over $1/gallon from recent highs, representing $13 billion of reduced annualized expense. This represents both the most rapid and most significant expense savings ever realized for the airlines, standing well in excess of any historic precedent for demand weakness.

The Industry Has Also Changed – This isn’t the same industry that gave us pause last March. Annualized system capacity cuts have reached 8%, liquidity defenses have been bolstered for many, other revenue trends (bag fees, etc) are surging, one merger appears set to close . . . and the sell side largely has settled into a period of uncharacteristic bearishness.

Best Yet, Equities Are Down – Sure, equities haven’t ignored oil’s descent. But many Legacy equities are still well below their March levels despite the aforementioned fundamental changes. Continental is 22% lower, Delta 23% lower, United 54% lower, to name a few."

On the balance sheet side of the equation, Baker and Streeter also re-ranked the capital structure ranking. Yee haw.

So if you are about to run out and purchase airline stocks, which stocks do the JP Morgan Dynamic Duo suggest you take a strong look at?

No surprises here.

Baker and Streeter said in their note that the legacy carriers they cover are all now "overweight," they are "neutral" on the "discounters," and "underweight" on the regionals.

With a few exceptions.

"LUV downgraded from N to UW, having outperformed as fuel made its ascent. PNCL maintained as an OW and RJET as N. AMR, CAL, and LCC upgraded from UW to OW; DAL and ALK from N to OW; NWA from UW to N. AAI and UAUA maintained at OW, JBLU at N."

Traders are standing by now to take those buy orders.

Posted by Holly at 10:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Subscribers of PlaneBusiness Banter can now access this week's issue here.

Posted by Holly at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The week ended on a great note for airline stocks.

The price of oil took another drop today, closing at 115.20, down almost $5 today alone.

So why is the price of oil continuing to drop?

Fears that the U.S. economic slowdown is now beginning to spread around the world is one reason. That is what has more or less caused the dollar to rise and the euro to fall this week. So much so that the dollar posted what appears to be its biggest one-day gain in the last four years today.

Couple this with continuing sentiment that the recent higher prices really have dented demand to a certain extent, especially in a number of Asian markets, and well -- there you go.

For airline stocks, the screen was all green this afternoon, with only two exceptions. Shares of Air Canada were down on that airline's earnings revelations today -- and ADRs of China Eastern Airlines got smacked around a bit as the stock market in China took a big hit today on what some were calling a "Post-Olympic" wake-up call.

The biggest gainers for the airline sector today were:

US Airways. The stock here ended the day up 18%, closing at 7.96.  The stock picked up a whopping 54% for the week as it posted the biggest gain for the week of any airline stock we track here at PlaneBusiness.

Shares of United Airlines rose 16% Friday, closing at 11.13. Shares here were up 36% for the week.

Shares of Continental wrapped up the top three spots for the day, as shares here picked up 12%, ending the week up 26%  at 16.48.

Posted by Holly at 4:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As I said to someone this afternoon, I'm not sure why anyone would willingly want to go on the Larry King show these days, it having turned into a tabloid-on-television entree more often than not of late.

But, apparently a lot of people still watch him.

So tonight, Dave Barger, CEO of JetBlue, will be on the show, discussing the airline's decision to remove all the filthy germ-ridden laundered-every-two-weeks pillows and blankets with clean ones you buy once and keep.

Hey, just doing my civic duty here. The show is on at 8 PM CDT, on CNN.

No word yet if the WSJ's Deal Yenta is going to one of the other guests, quizzing him about how he should sell the airline to Southwest. Before he gets really desperate.

Posted by Holly at 7:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

A reader alerted me to an article in Tuesday's online Wall Street Journal concerning JetBlue.

If you are a WSJ subscriber, you can access the entire column by clicking here.

The column was written by Heidi N. Moore, who writes under the moniker "Deal Yenta."

Her topic for the day was "Should JetBlue Sell Itself?"

Predictably, Deal Yenta opened the column by jumping all over JetBlue's announcement concerning how passengers will now be able to purchase nice clean sealed pillows and blankets for $7 on their longer haul flights, as an alternative to the free nasty germ-laden things that should never be used by anyone.

But, for some reason, this move then prompted the Deal Yenta to come to the conclusion that perhaps the airline should sell itself -- to Southwest Airlines.

Needless to say, when our reader told me about the column, I thought he was kidding.

No, he wasn't.

And I quote from this rather amusing-in-a-sad-sort-of-way piece,

"Many analysts have said the best way for airlines to cut capacity is to merge. JetBlue is far from desperate right now. Morgan Stanley analyst William Greene recently noted that the airline industry isn’t yet at the tipping point where carriers have to wrestle with consolidation or bankruptcy. That means that if JetBlue were to consider selling itself now, it wouldn’t be a desperation move. And that is the point. Wouldn’t it be better to do something while there is still plenty of time to maneuver and get the best deal possible?"

Lufthansa now owns a nice chunk of JetBlue, the airline did okay in the second quarter, and frankly, Dave Barger did not sound remotely desperate in the airline's second quarter call. Or, at least he didn't sound any more desperate than most other CEOs we've listened to of late. In fact, I'd say he almost has reason to be relatively calm, compared to some other CEOs.

Oh, and the $7 pillow and blanket package? I don't have a problem with it at all -- and my guess is that a lot of the JetBlue passenger base on the longer-haul flights will appreciate the opportunity to have a nice clean pillow and blanket. And hey, they can keep them and bring them back on the return flight!

So why in the world should this move indicate that JetBlue should consider selling itself? Much less to Southwest? Oh, and yes, while she did briefly acknowledge the obvious glaring incompatibility -- the two have absolutely nothing in common in terms of fleet types -- that problem was just as briefly -- dismissed.

This, after the Deal Yenta also mentioned, "If JetBlue does decide to flip its script and consider a sale, the most obvious fit might be Southwest Airlines. Both Southwest and JetBlue are so-called point-to-point airlines."

Is JetBlue a true point to point airline? What the heck is that huge operation at JFK? Ahhhh. Last time I looked I think it was a hub.

As we all know, there are a few true point-to-point airlines and then there are hub carriers, and then we have all the in-between hybrids. Both Southwest and JetBlue are hybrids to a certain extent. Just in very different ways.

Sheesh.

Columns like this just make me crazy.

Posted by Holly at 2:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Frankly, this proposal makes much more sense to me than the DIP deal that was announced recently with Perseus. I was not a big fan of the deal -- or at least what I had read about it. As I said then, I had anticipated there would be another airline involved in any deal for Frontier. For two reasons. One, it makes more sense than some kind of stand-alone venture, and two, if it was a good airline, with a reasonably strong management team, the sharing of management bench strength would be a plus.

This one hits on both counts, as best as I can tell at this early stage of the game.

Today, Frontier Airlines announced that it was going to go with an alternative DIP financing proposal that is anchored by members of the airline's Unsecured Creditors Committee. The three key players in this deal are Republic Airlines Holdings, Credit Suisse, and AQR Capital.

The three are offering the airline up to $75 million in DIP financing, with an immediate firm commitment and funding of $30 million.

This new DIP facility provides Frontier with lower financing costs, less restrictive covenants and greater flexibility to pursue strategic opportunities without being constrained by more restrictive DIP provisions, according to a release the airline put out.

Sounds much better to me.

Posted by Holly at 5:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, we don't have an email inbox gagging 64-page missive this week, but it's in the high 50s. ;-)

Subscribers to PlaneBusiness Banter can access this week's issue here.

Posted by Holly at 2:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Associated Press reports this afternoon that United Airlines says it has reached an agreement with ALPA to "limit what the company calls work slowdowns that forced cancellation of hundreds of flights and cost millions of dollars."

Neither the airline nor the union is talking specifics about just what was worked out. But whatever it is, supposedly this "agreement" will be in effect until hearings are held Aug. 27-28 on the airline's suit seeking a preliminary injunction against the union.

According to the report, all parties met in open court on Thursday to schedule hearings. When it became clear that the hearing on the preliminary injunction would not take place until the end of the month, U.S. District Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow asked the parties to reach an agreement protecting United from excessive cancellations.

The parties met behind closed doors in Lefkow's chambers on Friday morning and then canceled a second session set for Friday afternoon.

Instead, the airline said that an order would be filed with the court setting Aug. 27-28 for the hearing on the preliminary injunction.

Technorati Tags: airlines, ALPA, United Airlines

Posted by Holly at 4:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sitting on a tarmac for hours? Upset with your airline because your plane is late?

Well, just be glad you're not in China. Or worse, running an airline that operates in China.

Today the Financial Express reported that China will punish airlines whose passengers refuse to disembark or misbehave in protest over problems like delayed flights, as the Olympics host tries to" lift standards" before the Games.

Deputy head of the China  civil aviation regulator, Yang Guoqing, said enough was enough after numerous warnings to airlines to treat their passengers better appeared to have failed.

“We will severely punish airlines which experience aircraft occupations and other incidents as a result of service reasons which originate with the airline,” Yang told a news conference.

"These measures include cancelling slots at corresponding busy airports," he added. Shhhhhhhsh. Better not let Kate Hanni hear about this idea.

State media reported this week that scores of Chinese passengers smashed computers and desks and clashed with police after a night stranded at an airport without accommodation.

More than 170 passengers were due to leave Kunming, capital of southwestern Yunnan province, on three flights operated by China Southern Airlines late Monday, but the flights were cancelled due to bad weather, the Xinhua news agency said.

The report blamed the melee on China Southern staff’s 'inappropriate working attitude.' Yang said customers "must also be kept better informed about delays, especially those caused by bad weather, a big issue in China."

Hmmm. I wonder. Is bad weather a big issue in China, or keeping passengers better informed about the bad weather?

Posted by Holly at 4:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Well, not to PlaneBuzz, exactly, but to PlaneBusiness.

On this day in 1997, PlaneBusiness went public. On AOL.

Yep. We had our own keyword and everything.

PlaneBusiness Banter, and PlaneBusiness.com followed shortly after, as we published our first issue the first week of September, 1997. The first PBBs were sent by email. They were not published on the website as they are now.

Until two years ago, our first attempts at this fledgling enterprise were still there -- on AOL's servers. Lost in the bowels of everything else that had come since then.

You could still put in keyword "airlinebiz" and our pitiful (by today's standards) first venture onto the Internet was there to gaze at in astonishment.

Yes, I was always astounded when I would go back and look at it. Astounded at how fast all of what we now take for granted online has actually come about.

Then again, I still have a 9800K modem in the closet. And I remember when I thought it was latest greatest thing.

I'm off to find a Mexican chocolate cupcake. Yes, just like that one up there. Which means I'll probably have to bake it myself.

But that's the least I can do, considering today is such an auspicious occasion.

Posted by Holly at 1:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)