Déjà Vu All Over Again

The more things change, and all that… According to USA Today today, on Friday United raised fares by six dollars. Imagine that, six whole dollars. American, Continental, Delta, and Northwest quickly followed suit with identical fare increases. That was on Friday. On Saturday, United lowered fares right back down, reportedly because not all airlines raised theirs. On Sunday, Continental, Delta, and Northwest also chickened out. Danged if I can figure it. I am an airline customer myself. Typically, I shop for the best—cheapest—fares. But I have never—repeat, never—haggled over six dollars. If the airline I prefer charged me six dollars more, I wouldn’t change to save that six dollars. Does anybody choose one airline over the other to save six dollars? I kinda doubt it. So, why do five major airlines panic so fast when the world doesn’t match a six-dollar increase? Beats the heck outa me. I got an interesting perspective from a legacy airline pilot at a breakfast meeting of the "Greater North Alabama Lying Pilots Coffee Drinking & Hangar Talking Society" this morning. He thinks that flying for the airlines will not remain a career position. He says: 1) It is no longer the wonderful, valued, job it once was, so many might drop out after a few years. 2) The airlines have a strong incentive to (gently?) encourage older—more expensive—pilots out and to replace them with younger—cheaper—pilots straight out of school. 3) More women are entering the pilot arena, and he wonders if they will stay the course or drop out "to raise children." I’ve known this pilot for 28 years. He is an intelligent student of the industry (although he does often and mistakenly disagree with me). I don’t know if he is right or not, and maybe that’s not the important issue at all. It seems much more important to me that he believes this about his career. He has the job he always wanted and worked like hell to get, but it isn’t as nice (or as hard to get) as it used to be. I wonder how many other pilots feel the same way? Maybe more importantly, how many potential future airline pilots feel the same way? We'd love to post your comments. Please click the comment box at the top.