Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Dispatcher
Perhaps a new CPA with delta is already in the works...
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Sorry, but that's not going to happen. At DAL, the 50-seater is done, period. This is straight from Richard Anderson (the CEO of DAL) all the way down through every upper-level manager who has spoken to us. The focus is on 70 to 76-seat aircraft.
It's a matter of cost and at today's fuel prices, there is no way to make money on a 50-seater, even if you fill it up. The 757 burns about 6,500 lbs/hr compared to an average of around 3,000 lbs for the 145 (if memory serves me right). That's a little more than double the burn to carry three times the payload, including first class passengers. And even then, we're still losing money. There are some on here who make the argument that DAL and branded are making money because the flights are full, but load factor does not equate to profitability.
Although XJT provides the best service of anyone out there, it has the wrong airplane. Also, under the new joint contract, the number of 51+ seaters would be capped at 255. Between Comair, ASA, Skywest, Pinnacle, Mesaba, Compass and Mesa, most if not all are already spoken for. Even if XJT decided to add a larger plane to the fleet, I doubt they'd be flown under DAL colors, at least for near future.
Sorry.
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