PlaneBuzz tag:www.planebuzz.com,2008-02-03://2 2010-03-16T00:09:40Z Movable Type Pro 4.21-en PlaneBusiness Banter Now Posted! tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1638 2010-03-15T23:06:28Z 2010-03-16T00:09:40Z But the situation at British Airways is much more serious -- as the labor laws in the U.K. are very different than they are here.... This dispute has turned into a first class political fight -- as there is a general election coming up in the U.K. and what happens with British Airways has now become a political hot potato for the Labour government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown.... The FAA Forecast Conference was held last week in Washington as well -- and yes, NextGen was top of mind with FA A administrator Randy Babbitt -- but there were other things talked about as well.... If no agreement is reached here before November -- then the EU has some retaliatory things it can do -- and it would not be pleasant.... We also take a look at an interesting research note that Dan McKenzie, who is with Hudson Securities put out last week on why he thinks a United/Continental deal needs to be done sooner rather than later. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ Hi guys. This week's issue of PlaneBusiness Banter is now available for your perusal. Or you can read it if you prefer. But only if you are a subscriber. Otherwise, I'd prefer that you don't peruse it. Or read it.


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This week we have a pretty good issue, if I do say so myself. Obviously we are talking about the latest over at American Airlines as the TWU formally requested to be released from the NMB last week.

But the situation at British Airways is much more serious -- as the labor laws in the U.K. are very different than they are here. There, the union that represents the cabin crew for the airline -- Unite -- has already set strike dates against the airline. The first walk-out is scheduled to start this Saturday and run for three days. Unless something happens between now and then.

This dispute has turned into a first class political fight -- as there is a general election coming up in the U.K. and what happens with British Airways has now become a political hot potato for the Labour government of Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The Labour party, you see, has been heavily supported by the Unite organization in the past.

But most of U.K residents do not want a strike.

So you can see the problem here -- not to mention the fact that the Conservatives are now running a couple of points ahead in the current polling.

Yes, it's just one bloody mess, as our friend the Brits would say.

Back on this side of the pond, there is a lot of action in Washington these days concerning our beloved things with wings. First, Congress is attempting, one more time, to finally pass an FAA Reauthorization Bill. I'll update you on where all that stands after two major breaks in the logjam were made last week.

The FAA Forecast Conference was held last week in Washington as well -- and yes, NextGen was top of mind with FAA administrator Randy Babbitt -- but there were other things talked about as well. Including high-speed rail.

Then there is the upcoming resumption of negotiations between the EU and the U.S. on a new "Open Skies" agreement. The EU is still saying publicly that there will be no new agreement without a change in the current U.S. airline ownership laws.

The U.S. has not been able to agree to this in the past.

If no agreement is reached here before November -- then the EU has some retaliatory things it can do -- and it would not be pleasant.

The DOT issued its Airline Consumer Travel Report for January last week. We have the numbers. Alaska Air Group had a terrific month overall.

Two Wall Street analysts chimed in with their take on Allegiant's 757 aircraft announcement. We talk about that. We also take a look at an interesting research note that Dan McKenzie, who is with Hudson Securities put out last week on why he thinks a United/Continental deal needs to be done sooner rather than later.

And guess who pops up in the discussion? That's right. Southwest Airlines.

All this and much, much more including the new airport outside of Tokyo that has one flight a day currently scheduled.

It's that Japan Airlines way of looking at the world, I guess.

Subscribers can access this week's issue here.

]]> PlaneBusiness Banter Now Posted! tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1637 2010-03-10T01:38:04Z 2010-03-10T01:47:22Z As I told subscribers last week -- for the first time in 14 years I left on a weekend and never planned on picking up a laptop.... In other news, the J P Morgan Airline Investment Conference kicked off today, and it has already provided some good sound bytes, including a couple from the new sheriff in Houston, Continental Airlines ' CEO Jeff Smisek.... On the potential airline strike front, it looks, as of this writing, that the cabin crew employees (flight attendants for those of this on this side of the pond) for British Airways could strike the airline as soon as next Wednesday, pending what happened today with talks. Meanwhile, on this side of the pond, both the mechanics and the flight attendants at American Airlines continue their lock-step move towards both being released from the National Mediation Board from their negotiations with American Airlines.... But we could get a release to a 30-day cooling off period before the end of the week for one or both unions, depending on what happens tomorrow. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ home-typewriter copy-1.jpg

Hello everyone.

The latest issue of PlaneBusiness Banter is now posted. Subscribers can access this week's issue here.

Yours truly attended a wedding this past weekend. That is why I am a day late with this week's issue. As I told subscribers last week -- for the first time in 14 years I left on a weekend and never planned on picking up a laptop. Yay!

But back to the wedding. This was not just any wedding. It was a wedding of two industry employees. One a dedicated union dues-paying member. Another -- an executive member of an airline management team.

No surprise that I ruminate a bit this week on why it is that this industry is so hard on human relationships.

In other news, the JP Morgan Airline Investment Conference kicked off today, and it has already provided some good sound bytes, including a couple from the new sheriff in Houston, Continental Airlines' CEO Jeff Smisek. I really do believe that Jeff is attempting to channel Gordon Bethune -- only he's using a much younger persona.

On the potential airline strike front, it looks, as of this writing, that the cabin crew employees (flight attendants for those of this on this side of the pond) for British Airways could strike the airline as soon as next Wednesday, pending what happened today with talks.

Meanwhile, on this side of the pond, both the mechanics and the flight attendants at American Airlines continue their lock-step move towards both being released from the National Mediation Board from their negotiations with American Airlines. At essentially the same time.

Originally we had expected news on this front yesterday, but the NMB has asked both sides to keep talking. But we could get a release to a 30-day cooling off period before the end of the week for one or both unions, depending on what happens tomorrow.

We talk about this in this week's issue. How close is the airline to a potential strike? Pretty damn close. And the fact that the two unions are more or less joined at the hip in terms of the timetable here -- that does not help the airline at all. It gives the unions much more clout.

Airline stocks had another good week last week. And, as expected, the traffic and RASM estimates from those airlines that provide them have been almost -- across the board -- as expected or better. Southwest Airlines was a little light for some reason -- but the rest of the numbers have looked just as strong as the industry analysts had projected.

On another topic, we apparently have a new airline lurking in the weeds. Sorry. No more info until the end of the month.

And finally -- Allegiant Travel Company announced it was buying six 757-200s. The airline, which up until now has only flown Maddogs, is going to use the aircraft for new service to Hawaii. Hmmm. I can see it now. Des Moines to Maui.

Or something like that.

All this and more in this week's issue of PBB.

]]> PlaneBusiness Banter Now Posted! tag:www.planebuzz.com,2009://2.1605 2010-02-23T15:49:35Z 2010-03-02T01:07:28Z This week we take an in-depth look at the recent earnings results posted by United Airlines, US Airways, Delta Air Lines, Allegiant Travel , and American Airlines .... We like the results that Delta Air Lines posted, and in this week's issue I talk about how, after talking to some folks this last week who are close to the situation -- and after looking at who Delta has hired to help them with their effort -- I think A merican Airlines could be in big trouble as the airline attempts to keep JAL both a codeshare partner, and a member of oneworld. When all of this blew up in September, my assumption was that there was no way that American would let Delta snatch JAL for the SkyTeam alliance.... On the domestic front, Dan McKenzie, analyst at Next Generation brought up an interesting point last week about how Southwest is beefing up capacity in selected American markets, but it is pulling capacity out of both Philly and Phoenix.... Did you hear what the folks at Delta had to say about Continental's departure in the Delta earnings call? Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ home-typewriter copy-1.jpg

Hello everyone.

The latest issue of PlaneBusiness Banter is now posted. Subscribers can access this week's issue here.

So who do we dissect this week?

Republic Holdings.

I'll be honest. I'm still on the fence with this attempt by Bryan Bedford and the Republic management team to cobble together a new airline out of discarded parts of Midwest and Frontier Airlines.

I was hoping that this quarter we could get more visibility from the airline's earnings results as to how the grand experiment is faring -- but while Wall Street apparently liked the airline's results (the airline's stock led the sector this last week picking up a cool 14%), I didn't hear anything that really won me over.

So -- call me "continued skeptical."

Had to snicker when the airline talked about how it was "harvesting synergies" of the Midwest/Frontier combo. "Harvesting synergies".....fine example of corporate speak.

That kind of stuff makes me break out in hives.

We had one other regional airline report earnings this last week and that airline was ExpressJet. If you look only at the airline's net profit numbers, it would appear that the airline did pretty well for the quarter. But no -- the reason the airline posted a profit was because of a huge both cash and non-cash tax issue. The airline posted a $17 million operating loss -- that was also a clear indicator that no, this was not that good of a quarter.

Meanwhile, the airline remains without a permanent CEO. You may recall that the airline's CEO Jim Ream left the airline effective Jan. 1 -- as he took the SVP of Maintenance and Engineering gig at American Airlines.

The weather certainly created a whole slew of new cancellations last week for many of the U.S. carriers. Adding to the pain of the New York area airspace - the longest runway at JFK International was officially shut down today -- as the airport prepares to rebuild and widen it. It will be closed for four months.

I know. Let the fun begin.

On the economic front, it was another yin-yang week for economic tea leaf reading, but on the airline economic/RASM front, analysts continue to fall all over themselves about just how great year-over-year RASM numbers are going to be for the next 3-4 months.

Or as JP Morgan analyst Jamie Baker said at one point, "If it flies, buy it!" Actually Jamie acknowledged last week that he is not quite that bullish now -- but tonight we should get our first glimpse of higher RASM numbers -- as Continental rolls out its February traffic report.

All this and more, including Japan Air Line's horrendous loss, Air New Zealand's nice profit, Aircell's win at Alaska Air Group, fighting flight attendants, a new high-end, but reasonably priced crash pad for pilots in Houston, and more in this week's issue of PlaneBusiness Banter .

]]> Rock On! tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1636 2010-02-12T21:56:09Z 2010-02-12T21:57:23Z There is once again electricity humming through the lines to the great outside world. Which means the computers are buzzing, the printers are printing, the washer is washing, the dryer is drying, the stove top is cooking, the television is yapping, and most importantly -- Holly got to take a nice hot shower and get cleaned up!... As for PlaneDad, my thanks to the folks at Expedient Home Health services, who managed to find us a place to move him to -- had the energy gods not decided to play nice. But since it's warm again, he says he isn't going anywhere. The man knows the food is definitely better if he stays here. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ The energy gods have shown down upon the Worldwide Headquarters. There is once again electricity humming through the lines to the great outside world. Which means the computers are buzzing, the printers are printing, the washer is washing, the dryer is drying, the stove top is cooking, the television is yapping, and most importantly -- Holly got to take a nice hot shower and get cleaned up!

Ahhhhh. I can't remember the last time a shower felt so good.

As for PlaneDad, my thanks to the folks at Expedient Home Health services, who managed to find us a place to move him to -- had the energy gods not decided to play nice. But since it's warm again, he says he isn't going anywhere.

The man knows the food is definitely better if he stays here. (That's assuming the electricity stays on!)

]]> Day Two: Temperature 50 degrees tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1635 2010-02-12T14:43:58Z 2010-02-12T15:05:47Z For those of you on the East Coast who contnue to dig out from record amounts of snow today -- I know that 12 inches of snow does not sound like a big deal. Unless that 12 inches of snow... Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ For those of you on the East Coast who contnue to dig out from record amounts of snow today -- I know that 12 inches of snow does not sound like a big deal.

Unless that 12 inches of snow causes one to lose power.

It's now been 24 hours since the power first went out at the Worldwide Headquarters here in DFW. While it is very beautiful outside -- with all that heavy white snow on the ground, the problem is that this same heavy white snow is causing limbs to come down all over the place. Last night the sky was lit up all night with the bluish sparks from generators as they blew.

Temperature outside at 9 A.M? 32. Temperature inside? 50.

Ability to get any work done?

Zero.

Adding to the uncomfortable quotient is the fact that 90 year-old PlaneDad is at the Worldwide Headquarters... recovering from hip surgery. If it was just me and the other canine and feline assistants, I would not be as concerned. But I fear I may have to begin working on an emergency evacuation an for him in the next couple of hours. Circulation, cold feet, diabetes. Yep. You get the picture.

Speaking of pictures, here is one of my assistants now. You can see that she has the right idea.

Yes, thank goodness for gas logs.


[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]


]]> United Airlines Blows Doors Off With January RASM Estimate tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1634 2010-02-09T19:43:33Z 2010-02-09T19:45:05Z I'm sitting here waiting for final edits to be done on this week's issue of PBB , and was just looking at the wild party going on with airline stocks today. In case some of you are wondering what is going on with the sector today -- which is up significantly across the board -- United Airlines issued the first of its revised format traffic reports after the close of the market yesterday. As CFO Kathy Mikells discussed in the airline's recent earnings call -- and we talked about in PlaneBusiness Banter -- she is attempting to increase the level of transparency in the airline's financial reporting. As a result, the airline is now going to provide a RASM estimate, along with the usual traffic information in its monthly traffic release.... The airline easily blew past analyst forecast RASM numbers -- as the airline estimated that its RASM in January was up between 9.5% and 11.5%. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/
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I'm sitting here waiting for final edits to be done on this week's issue of PBB, and was just looking at the wild party going on with airline stocks today.

In case some of you are wondering what is going on with the sector today -- which is up significantly across the board -- United Airlines issued the first of its revised format traffic reports after the close of the market yesterday.

As CFO Kathy Mikells discussed in the airline's recent earnings call -- and we talked about in PlaneBusiness Banter -- she is attempting to increase the level of transparency in the airline's financial reporting. As a result, the airline is now going to provide a RASM estimate, along with the usual traffic information in its monthly traffic release. The airline is also going to provide an update as to its current fuel costs.

Airlines like Continental, JetBlue, and US Airways already provide RASM estimates when they report their monthly traffic numbers.

When the new-look United Airlines release hit the wires last night -- all of us received quite a shock.

The airline easily blew past analyst forecast RASM numbers -- as the airline estimated that its RASM in January was up between 9.5% and 11.5%. Analysts had forecast a figure somewhere between 3% and 6% -- depending on the analyst.

So -- there you go. That is why airline stocks are frolicking today.

At last check, shares of United were up 17% for the day, trading at about 15.28.

]]> PlaneBusiness Banter Posted Today tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1633 2010-02-09T15:13:34Z 2010-02-09T15:16:31Z No, I am not still celebrating the Saints win Sunday night.... No, as most of you know, PlaneDad is camped out at the Worldwide Headquarters, as he recuperates from surgery to repair his broken hip. Things generally have been going well on that front, but this weekend was rough, (a follow-up from some aggressive physical therapy on Friday) and Monday was a rather, er, trying day.... This week's issue of PBB will be posted later today. I'll post a note here as I always do after it is up and ready for your perusal. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ An advisory for our PlaneBusiness Banter subscribers. The latest issue will be posted today. My apologies for the delay. No, I am not still celebrating the Saints win Sunday night. No, no. I wish that was my excuse.

No, as most of you know, PlaneDad is camped out at the Worldwide Headquarters, as he recuperates from surgery to repair his broken hip.

Things generally have been going well on that front, but this weekend was rough, (a follow-up from some aggressive physical therapy on Friday) and Monday was a rather, er, trying day.

Hey, life happens.

This week's issue of PBB will be posted later today. I'll post a note here as I always do after it is up and ready for your perusal.

Now -- go do what you usually do on Tuesdays.

]]> Guest Columnists Welcome tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1632 2010-02-08T16:17:38Z 2010-02-08T16:28:08Z Or then there is the video in my head of the Monday Night Football game I attended in the Dome when Kenny Stabler and the Oakland Raiders erased a 28 point half-time deficit to come back and beat the Saints.... After the return of our long-lost guest columnist Frank Arciuolo last week, (and yes, I was glad to read that some of you got as much of a kick out of his photo as I did), I wanted to let all of you know that, yes, PlaneBuzz is always open to guess columnists.... Going forward, I would like to hear from more of you about whatever topics are important to you -- and if you'd like to jot down some of your own thoughts -- just drop me an email. In addition, from time to time, I am now going to post material from PBB either directly here in PlaneBuzz or I will link to it from here, enabling everyone to read certain columns or interviews.... The first of these reposted pieces will come this week, when, after a tremendous number of requests to do so, I will let everyone read my recent interview with the Chairman of the Delta Air Lines ALPA MEC -- Lee Moak. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ Thank you all for your patience as I try and absorb what I witnessed on television Sunday night. Forty three years of abject frustration and crushed hopes are now history.

The old visuals in my mind? When that damn field goal kicker for the Los Angeles Rams kicked one down the middle to keep the Saints out of the playoffs in the mid-80s. Or then there is the video in my head of the Monday Night Football game I attended in the Dome when Kenny Stabler and the Oakland Raiders erased a 28 point half-time deficit to come back and beat the Saints. Aint's bags. Archie Manning being booed off the field and trash dumped on his head.

I suppose my greatest ire is reserved for Saints owner Tom Benson, who clearly thought he was going to pick up the team and move it to San Antonio after Katrina. Watching him and his squirmy comments after Katrina made me want to reach through my television and strangle him.

But thankfully -- then-NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue had other ideas. Thank you Paul.

This morning, I am happy to report that the new visual in my mind is that of Drew Brees with his son on the podium last night -- enjoying the moment.

May we all have those times in our lives when we too can -- enjoy the moment.

Speaking of -- any of you want to enjoy a PlaneBuzz moment?

After the return of our long-lost guest columnist Frank Arciuolo last week, (and yes, I was glad to read that some of you got as much of a kick out of his photo as I did), I wanted to let all of you know that, yes, PlaneBuzz is always open to guess columnists.

Last year I began to focus more of my time and attention to our flagship publication of the PlaneBusiness empire, PlaneBusiness Banter. Why? Because those folks who subscribe to PBB deserve the bulk of my attention.

There are any number of blog sites/news sites now that can give you news-breaking tidbits about the various airline-industry antics. At no charge.

But I have no desire to try and compete in that league. I can't. Unless I want to go on food stamps and bask in the knowledge that I am working for a non-profit entity.

And no, I have no desire to do that. No sir-ee.

As a result, for the last six months or so I have struggled with just what I should and should not write about here in PlaneBuzz.

Going forward, I would like to hear from more of you about whatever topics are important to you -- and if you'd like to jot down some of your own thoughts -- just drop me an email.

In addition, from time to time, I am now going to post material from PBB either directly here in PlaneBuzz or I will link to it from here, enabling everyone to read certain columns or interviews. But these will be posted on a delayed basis. Subscribers to PBB will continue to get first dibs.

The first of these reposted pieces will come this week, when, after a tremendous number of requests to do so, I will let everyone read my recent interview with the Chairman of the Delta Air Lines ALPA MEC -- Lee Moak.

Again, look for access to that lengthy interview here in PlaneBuzz this week.

But again -- if any of you have a desire to tell all of us how you feel about something pertaining to the airline industry -- drop me a note. We can hash it out. Polish it up. And give you your own chance at having your own PlaneBuzz "moment."

Submission inquiries can be sent directly to me at hhegeman@planebusiness.com.

Just put "Buzz Comment" in the header of the email.

Now, excuse me while I go finish the in-depth earnings report on Allegiant Travel Company, parent of Allegiant Airlines, that will be included in this week's PlaneBusiness Banter. Yep, another mega-earnings issue is on tap this week. This week we have an interesting mix of airlines that we take a closer look at -- AirTran, Allegiant, and Alaska Air Group.

]]> Who Dat Going To Disney World? Drew Brees - Dat's Who tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1631 2010-02-08T15:42:55Z 2010-02-08T15:46:34Z Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ breesTP.jpg

]]> Superbowl Sunday: Let the Game Begin tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1630 2010-02-07T18:00:32Z 2010-02-07T18:01:58Z Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ whodat.jpg

]]> The Super Human IT Effort A Reservations System "Migration" Requires tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1629 2010-02-02T18:27:43Z 2010-02-02T23:54:38Z My plan when I left my last job at the beginning of 2008 was to do some part time flight instruction and get a part time job as an FO on a corporate jet – I even got my CE500 type rating.However, like they did so many other people, circumstances conspired against me.... There are a host of technical issues that would make your eyes glaze over and I’d be happy to talk about them in detail to any other IT geeks out there, but that’s not today’s point.... However, since those external systems, by design, withhold certain information from the host system (like fare basis code, form of payment, and other key customer information), the host system has difficulty figuring out of someone booking in an external system has simply reserved a seat or has actually purchased a ticket. Traditional host systems are excellent for generating large volumes of bookings and they can ensure tickets are purchased on booking within its system, but not as good as ensuring the purchase of bookings made outside its system.... For a boutique type airline starting out that has made the decision to remain out of the GDS and its evil and expensive booking fees, the selection of a reservations system would lean towards one that allows better CRM. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/
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Editor's Note: This week I welcome a previous contributor to PlaneBuzz, Frank Arciuolo. Frank has not been seen around these parts in a long time. For reasons he talks about in his latest effort. I figure he felt sorry for me after it took him two hours to read this week's issue of PBB, and thought the environs around here had been much too quiet!

In his previous efforts in PlaneBuzz, we used a "Godzilla" rendering for his ID photo. I figured it's time you get to see the real deal. Mud and all. Enjoy!



Hi there, Godzilla here. I know it’s been a very long time since I’ve contributed to PlaneBuzz but I’ve been preoccupied with some of the more mundane things in life – like trying to find gainful employment. My plan when I left my last job at the beginning of 2008 was to do some part time flight instruction and get a part time job as an FO on a corporate jet – I even got my CE500 type rating.However, like they did so many other people, circumstances conspired against me. Taking flying lessons is well down the list of priorities for most people now, if it makes the list at all. And right seat jobs in corporate aviation are as scarce as, well, the hair on my head.

But, I digress. Anyway, thanks to Holly for letting me fill my idle time and the pages of PlaneBuzz simultaneously.

You know the feeling an ex-airport ticket agent gets when he/she wakes up on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, looks out the window to see dense fog – then rolls over and goes back to sleep because they are off that day? That’s the feeling I got when reading about recent events at WestJet concerning their reservations system cutover and the system cutover at JetBlue this weekend.

In my previous lives I’ve participated in about 8 reservation system cutovers; one as an airline employee and the others as an interested bystander, AKA a vendor. My advice to any IT person working at an airline that is considering switching reservations systems is to dust off the resume and start networking (the people kind). People in the reservations system business (the “biz”) often refer euphemistically to a reservations system cutover as a migration. That’s a nice word, migration. It gives one the vision of a flock of Canadian geese traveling to MIA for a nice warm winter.

However a reservations system migration, or at least the ones I’ve been involved in, does NOT resemble a migration of birds to South Beach for the winter. Picture a reservations system migration as a flock of 1 million geese leaving Canada on a Friday night. On Saturday morning nobody can find ANY geese ANYWHERE. By Saturday mid afternoon 3 million birds arrive in Tampa, but only 25% of them are actually the geese that left Canada Friday night, the rest are pigeons. By Saturday night trucks have been chartered to take ALL of the birds from TPA to MIA because nobody wants to let them out of their sight. The trucks arrive in MIA Sunday morning and are gone through manually (by IT employees) to determine which are the geese they want to keep and which are the pigeons. Sunday night the airline CEO does the math and realizes that 25% of 3 million does NOT equal the 1 million geese he had Friday night. Where are the rest of the geese? Holy crap, what’d we do with those pigeons? Resumes and bird poo simultaneously hit the mail and the fan Monday morning.

Funny story, yes, but perhaps more real than you think. Airline reservations are literally money in the bank. Moving this valuable asset from one point in cyber space to another is fraught with land mines. There are a host of technical issues that would make your eyes glaze over and I’d be happy to talk about them in detail to any other IT geeks out there, but that’s not today’s point.

Since migrating is such a gut wrenching experience where the BEST result is a zero sum gain (and the worst result is working in bird poo), don’t do it! Some cutovers are unavoidable, like the DL/NW move and whatever will eventually happen with YX/F9 and the boyz in IND. Those cases also represent mergers/acquisitions, where the party on each side of the transaction has an interest in avoiding a train wreck. Migrations that are the riskiest are the ones where an airline is changing reservations systems they may have outgrown, or perhaps for a better deal.

Traditional hosting or multi host systems are very good at high volume transactions and at communicating with Global Distribution Systems (GDS) and other systems. Because they communicate with external systems so well, traditional host systems can greatly expand an airline’s distribution reach. However, since those external systems, by design, withhold certain information from the host system (like fare basis code, form of payment, and other key customer information), the host system has difficulty figuring out of someone booking in an external system has simply reserved a seat or has actually purchased a ticket. Traditional host systems are excellent for generating large volumes of bookings and they can ensure tickets are purchased on booking within its system, but not as good as ensuring the purchase of bookings made outside its system.

The newer reservations systems are much slicker at communicating with customers within their system and with the airline’s web site, but are not very good at communicating with outside GDS and other systems. Like the traditional hosting systems, they are good at forcing the customer to purchase a ticket before ending the reservation. One big advantage they have over traditional hosting systems is that the newer systems create a database of the airline reservations. A real database allows the airline to do detailed analysis of its customers and to effectively execute Customer Relationship Marketing (CRM) to its customers based on their purchases. This type of information makes airline marketing people salivate at the possibilities for the easiest type of marketing there is – to your existing customer.

For a boutique type airline starting out that has made the decision to remain out of the GDS and its evil and expensive booking fees, the selection of a reservations system would lean towards one that allows better CRM. However if the airline grows to a point where expanding the distribution network is necessary, as is agreeing to booking fees and all the rest, they’ve chosen the wrong reservations hosting system.

It makes sense to either add the robust external communication feature to the true reservation database system, or add the relational database feature to the traditional hosting systems. The first system to truly do that will have the golden egg. However, there are immense technical challenges of taking the incredibly dense set of text files (which is really what they are) that are contained in the reservations systems of AA, UA, DL, etc. and indexing them into a relational database. That would seem to argue for a solution that “bolts on” to the big hosting system and allows both systems to do what they do best.  

Until this happens, try to be on vacation the weekend your airline reservations migrate!

]]> Pigs Fly, Santa Does Exist, And the New Orleans Saints Are In the Superbowl tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1627 2010-01-25T15:18:55Z 2010-01-25T15:19:27Z Or maybe it's just my mind and body trying to get back to some semblance of normal after experiencing almost four hours of what was a roller coaster of emotions consisting primarily of terror and anxiety, interrupted occasionally by bursts of excitement.... Yes, that same Peyton Manning who grew up watching his father, quarterback Archie Manning, staring up at the roof of the Superdome more often than not on Sunday afternoons -- as the New Orleans Saints of another era were routinely pummeled by opposing teams.... Yours truly can remember many a game in the Superdome where I, along with a group of close pals, would drag in boxes of Popeye's Fried Chicken, along with the requisite strategically hidden stashes of liquid additives for our Coca-Colas, up to the nosebleed seats in the Terrace level in the Louisiana Superdome.... Instead of learning what it means to "Second Line," what a truly great guy Drew Brees is in every sense of the word, and how you make barbecued shrimp from Mr. B's, you could be watching film clips of pine trees in Kiln, Mississippi, and yet another interview of a deliberately pensive Brett Favre, as he talks about how whether the Superbowl will be his last game or not.... Well, I guess I could ask for someone else to come in my office today and finish writing this mega-earnings issue of PlaneBusiness Banter that is sitting on my computer -- so I could just crawl the net and read all the stories I can find about the game. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/
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It's been almost 12 hours, but the shock has still not completely worn off.

Or maybe it's just my mind and body trying to get back to some semblance of normal after experiencing almost four hours of what was a roller coaster of emotions consisting primarily of terror and anxiety, interrupted occasionally by bursts of excitement. Only to be followed by attempts to keep that nauseous sense of dread from taking over the ride.

Yes, the New Orleans Saints are headed to the Superbowl.

There, they will meet New Orleans-native son Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts.

Yes, that same Peyton Manning who grew up watching his father, quarterback Archie Manning, staring up at the roof of the Superdome more often than not on Sunday afternoons -- as the New Orleans Saints of another era were routinely pummeled by opposing teams.

Did I ever possess an "Aint's Bag"? Of course I did. Yours truly can remember many a game in the Superdome where I, along with a group of close pals, would drag in boxes of Popeye's Fried Chicken, along with the requisite strategically hidden stashes of liquid additives for our Coca-Colas, up to the nosebleed seats in the Terrace level in the Louisiana Superdome. Then, almost without fail, we would masochistically endure yet another heart-breaking loss by the then-hapless boys in the black and gold.

But not before we had made our hands sore and red from banging on the aluminum panels that cover the walls in the upper deck of the stadium. They made a huge racket.

And not before we had completely lost our voices.

But for some strange reason, we never lost our faith.

Faith in the team, and, well, in the city itself. And trust me, living in New Orleans will test your faith every single day -- in one way or another.

In fact, the game last night? Long periods of anxiety interrupted by bursts of over-the-top happiness, overlaid with this huge sense of dread that threatens to take over at any time? Yep. That's is essentially the metaphor for what it means to live in the city.

As I tell a lot of people -- it's just too damn complicated to explain. But once you experience it, you're doomed. Nothing else ever comes close.

You might as well face it -- you are going to be hearing a lot about New Orleans from the usual press sources over the next two weeks. Please be patient. Let the folks who still call the city home -- let them enjoy their time in the sun. They more than deserve it.

Besides, think of what the alternative would have been. Instead of learning what it means to "Second Line," what a truly great guy Drew Brees is in every sense of the word, and how you make barbecued shrimp from Mr. B's, you could be watching film clips of pine trees in Kiln, Mississippi, and yet another interview of a deliberately pensive Brett Favre, as he talks about how whether the Superbowl will be his last game or not.

Bzzzzzt. Not.

Brett, it really is now time to go ride that tractor. Ride, baby, ride.

And how 'bout the young man who calmly booted that winning field goal in overtime? Garrett Hartley is a product of that Texas high school football powerhouse that sits just down the road from the Worldwide Headquarters -- Southlake Carroll High School.

I mean, what else can one ask for?

Well, I guess I could ask for someone else to come in my office today and finish writing this mega-earnings issue of PlaneBusiness Banter that is sitting on my computer -- so I could just crawl the net and read all the stories I can find about the game. And continue to wallow in the warmth of the win.

But alas, duty calls. Subscribers, this week's issue of PlaneBusiness Banter will be posted later today. Talk to you then.

]]> Frontier-Republic: Clearing up a Possible Misperception tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1626 2010-01-22T21:46:18Z 2010-01-22T21:52:26Z Since he no longer reads us on a weekly basis, he took my earlier post about the Frontier employee rogue blog as implying that I am not a fan of the Republic Holdings/Frontier/Midwest Airlines experiment.... But for those of you who are subscribers and read my review of the Republic Holdings third quarter earnings call in November -- you know that I continued, at that point, to give the boys in Indy the benefit of the doubt as they made their way across the mine-filled tundra of their cut and paste business plan.... Those conditions were: that the guts of the Frontier Airlines management team, headed by Sean Menke stay associated with the new venture.... Second condition: that the brain trust at Republic Holdings did not dismiss the incredible value of the employee/management relationship at Frontier Airlines .... Unfortunately, I am afraid now that the continuation of that valuable Frontier culture seems to be in danger -- given some moves of late by the Republic management team. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/
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I had an interesting note from a former subscriber to PlaneBusiness Banter this afternoon. Since he no longer reads us on a weekly basis, he took my earlier post about the Frontier employee rogue blog as implying that I am not a fan of the Republic Holdings/Frontier/Midwest Airlines experiment.

Au contraire. If any of you out there think the same -- continue reading.

I have been a pretty optimistic supporter of Mr. Bedford's experiment over the last year. Although I have been concerned about his lack of cash. But for those of you who are subscribers and read my review of the Republic Holdings third quarter earnings call in November -- you know that I continued, at that point, to give the boys in Indy the benefit of the doubt as they made their way across the mine-filled tundra of their cut and paste business plan. With two BIG conditions.

Those conditions were: that the guts of the Frontier Airlines management team, headed by Sean Menke stay associated with the new venture. In November, this was assumed to be the case.

This is no longer the case.

Second condition: that the brain trust at Republic Holdings did not dismiss the incredible value of the employee/management relationship at Frontier Airlines. That it not start to rip that culture apart -- all in the name of making some numbers look better.

Unfortunately, I am afraid now that the continuation of that valuable Frontier culture seems to be in danger -- given some moves of late by the Republic management team.

So no -- I was, up until recently, a rather optimistic observer of the grand experiment.

Then again, I'm not saying that the whole thing is dead -- I'm just not encouraged by the recent news coming out of Indianapolis. Much less my email box -- especially from those close to the Frontier operation.

]]> Rogue Frontier Airlines Blog: This is Good Stuff tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1625 2010-01-22T17:21:26Z 2010-01-22T17:23:45Z One of the things that airline management team members have to understand is this -- In this day of blogs and internet chat rooms -- you can't sweep the voice of concerned and/or pissed off and/or disillusioned employees under the rug like you used to years ago. Nope.... For the most part the article was pretty mundane, but for me the most telling quote in the piece was, " Bedford said there are no immediate plans to replace Menke but that if a successor is named, the person will be added at Republic headquarters." Apparently, Bedford has obtained a copy of "Revenue Management for Dummies" and feels that he no longer needs the services of anyone with experience in that field or that moving the functions to Indianapolis will magically solve all of those issues like it has everything else.... I truly hope that the A330 mention was a misquote or a typo instead of A320, but at this point I can't say I would be surprised if it was not and Mr. Bedford doesn't realize the differences in the aircraft.... After much searching, I was finally able to obtain this mysterious "To Do" list and as I think you will see, it offers much insight on what it takes to be the CEO at Republic Airways. Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/
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One of the things that airline management team members have to understand is this -- In this day of blogs and internet chat rooms -- you can't sweep the voice of concerned and/or pissed off and/or disillusioned employees under the rug like you used to years ago.

Nope. Those days are long gone.

Need we talk about the series of "Hitler" videos from the various airline pilot groups that popped up last year?

Today, the latest example of this: A blog by the name of "All Things Frontier Airlines."

No, I don't know who is writing this effort, but whoever it is is both very knowledgeable about the airline, and he/she has a razor wit to boot.

Kudos to whomever is writing this. It is one of the better "rogue" efforts we've seen in a long time.

Here is a snippet from the Thursday post.

"Today, Republic found themselves in the news twice. The first article which appeared in the Denver Post, was aptly named "Republic chief has "work to do". For the most part the article was pretty mundane, but for me the most telling quote in the piece was, "Bedford said there are no immediate plans to replace Menke but that if a successor is named, the person will be added at Republic headquarters." Apparently, Bedford has obtained a copy of "Revenue Management for Dummies" and feels that he no longer needs the services of anyone with experience in that field or that moving the functions to Indianapolis will magically solve all of those issues like it has everything else. The article goes on to mention that Frontier will be receiving 3 Airbus 330's and 7 Embraer 190 aircraft. I truly hope that the A330 mention was a misquote or a typo instead of A320, but at this point I can't say I would be surprised if it was not and Mr. Bedford doesn't realize the differences in the aircraft. Most of all, I really like the title of this article, "Republic chief has "work to do". Naturally, I began to wonder what work Mr. Bedford has in store. After much searching, I was finally able to obtain this mysterious "To Do" list and as I think you will see, it offers much insight on what it takes to be the CEO at Republic Airways.

Brian Bedford To Do list:
- Check E-Mail and forward "Obama no birth certificate email" again to the non believers.
- Look up current fuel prices and figure out what can be moved to Indianapolis or who's pay can be cut as a result.
- Take a nap.
- Call CEO of Qwest and convince him to move the business and employees to Indianapolis.
- Prepare weekly letter to employees by incorporating at least 2 scriptures, 1 quote from Winston Churchill, and the evils of same sex marriage."

]]> Well, I guess I can....however... tag:www.planebuzz.com,2010://2.1624 2010-01-21T21:11:23Z 2010-01-21T21:13:01Z I just remembered that this older version of Ecto won't let me simply replace a post with a corrected version. Oh no...it keeps both posts online. Ugh. Okay. Back later.... Holly http://www.planebusiness.com/ I just remembered that this older version of Ecto won't let me simply replace a post with a corrected version. Oh no...it keeps both posts online. Ugh. Okay. Back later.

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