Monthly Archives: September 2009

Wanted: Copy of Southwest Airlines Hitler Sub-Titled Video

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I hate it when this happens.

Apparently the classic Hitler clip with the Southwest Airlines storyline has now disappeared from YouTube. I’ve been told by several folks that there was apparently a full-fledged effort by certain entities to find out who did it and get it removed from the public air space.

Whatever the reason — I’d bet on the new TA between the pilots and management– the video is gone.

Hey, I want a copy. It needs to go in the archives.

As one reader wrote this morning, “Alas, the stunningly funny video is no longer available on YouTube… Any chance you downloaded a copy and can email to me? Something this much of a classic must be saved for posterity…. Thanks…”

Okay — a one-year complimentary subscription to PlaneBusiness Banter is on the line. I know somebody out there has one. So — give it up!

hhegeman at planebusiness.com is the email address.

Southwest and SWAPA Have Another Tentative Agreement in Hand

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Hey, I could be talking about the push to get a passenger rights bill passed.

No, I really didn’t plan for today to be the Southwest AIrlines news day.

But this afternoon SWAPA, the pilot’s union at Southwest, announced a new tentative agreement with the company. This will be the second attempt by both sides at getting a new contract ratified.

Highlights of the contract behind door number two are:

The current number of Lance Captains, as of the ratification date, will be grandfathered for the term of the agreement. (This was a big reason the attempt to ratify the last last TA failed.)

ELITT restrictions will drop from previous TA and is now contractual.

The new Open Time system as explained in the previous TA will now have a test period (circuit breaker) in which SWAPA can opt out.

In terms of compensation, the new agreement includes raises and full retro pay.

There is an increase in 401(k) matching by the company.

And on the subject of codesharing, the TA lowers the previously negotiated near-international ASM cap, and it removes Frontier-specific RJ exemption language.

Payment Processing Issues With New Southwest Airlines Website

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Oops.

Maybe this was not a good time for Southwest Airlines to throw a big $49 sale.

I am traveling to Austin the week after next where I will be giving the luncheon keynote address at this year’s  The BeatLIVE Conference.  More on the conference this week.

Anyway, I have to get there. So I just went to make a reservation on Southwest’s brand new website.

I tried three times.

Very odd payment processing problems. After two attempts to pay by credit card failed, I tried to pay by PayPal.

When I did that, things really got strange, as the card information that was brought up was OLD PayPal account and card information. I mean, I’ve changed this information in the last two months. I’ve used PayPal in the last week and it had all the new information keyed in with the right account and address information.

So where did the old information come from?

Was this actually stored on some server at Southwest? Dunno. But it was kind of unsettling.

Against my better judgment, I then re-entered and changed all the information, although the whole process didn’t seem right to me.

Didn’t matter. When I tried to purchase the ticket, I got the same error message.

Guess I’ll just have to call the number they gave me to call and do it the old fashioned way.

Anyone else having problems with the new site?

Back at the Ranch For My Not-So-Favorite Week of the Year

Hello all.

Well, it’s the Tuesday after Labor Day.

No more excuses for not working.

Unfortunately our return to work each time this year now coincides with the anniversary of one of my least favorite historical events. I’m sure you agree.

Yes, this Friday will be the 8th anniversary of the events of September 11, 2001.

As always, we will honor those employees of this industry who lost their life that day in both PlaneBuzz and PlaneBusiness Banter this week.

Yep. Can’t help it. For me at least, this week is, and will always be, one of reflection and remembrance.

Vacation Coming To An End….Sigh

Thanks to all of you who have been attempting to get me to comment this week on any number of goings-on in the airline industry.

But, I am happy to say — I resisted.

Until today.

No, I said, I am on vacation, and damn it, I am going to stay offline. Until Tuesday.

Until today.

And what got me to finally break my silence? Something wickedly funny. Of course.

Most of you probably saw the recent YouTube effort in which some enterprising Boeing employee ( I would bet) did a take off on Boeing’s continued delays with the 787. The video used? A now-familiar clip from a recent Hitler made-for-television movie that seems tailor-made for such antics. In fact, there are scores of these parodies now on YouTube, including one dealing with Brett Favre’s sign-up with the Vikings. I know. Just one of those things that seems to be tailor-made for mischief.

This week das Fuhrer has made yet another appearance.

But this time it appears that a Southwest Airlines’ pilot is the one responsible for the sub-titles. And Southwest’s CEO Gary Kelly is the one barking out German invectives to his underlings.

I’ve had more than a handful of you inquire as to whether moi had anything to do with this. I think the reason is because there are some very “inside” management barbs in this new satire. So I guess the assumption is that this was something right up my alley.

But I am here to say — I am completely innocent.

That is not to say that I didn’t chuckle out loud more than once when I watched it, though. (Yeah, you know Business Select takes a hit in here, along with…..”It’s ON!”) But I think I may have laughed the loudest at the “deck party” comment.

Not sure some folks over on Denton Drive are going to be too amused, however. This one hits just a little too close to home. On more than one front.

Serious stuff? Oh of course there has been a lot of serious stuff going on in the industry this past week — including headline-grabbing FAA interventions with both American Airlines and Southwest Airlines. I mean, if this continues, the FAA should just move their headquarters to Dallas, don’t you think?

And yes, Southwest, when not feverishly repairing aircraft this week, also announced a new “fee” for passengers. I’ll be talking about this news this next week, along with a whole lot more. When my vacation finally ends on Tuesday.

Sigh.

Enjoy your Labor Day weekend everyone. Tennis in the greatest city in the world, college football at a stadium near you, and cooler temps almost everywhere.

Life simply doesn’t get any better than this. Get out there and enjoy it.