Blog Archives
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Outsourcing Pilots
- Tuesday June 27, 2006I have on my computer a blistering e-mail attacking ALPA, the union of many airline pilots. This diatribe cometh not from hardhearted management or flaming free-market entrepreneurial types, but from airline pilots. You may well know that the International Civil Aeronautics Association (ICAO) is reported to be in the final stages of changing the so called Age 60 Rule so that airline pilots elsewhere can fly to age 65 rather than age 60. The ruling has no legal force in the U.S., however. At least not for U.S. pilots employed by U.S. companies. It’s not quite that simple, of course, but basically, foreign airlines flying to, from, and over the U.S. will be able to use pilots over age 60. U.S. airlines will not. The U.S. guvmint has... -
Questions at Airbus
- Friday June 23, 2006News of late from Airbus has been nothing short of startling, centered around the manufacturer's announcement that it will be delaying deliveries of the much-anticipated A380 airliner. Singapore Airlines, the launch customer, reacted by ordering 20 787 'Dreamliners' from Boeing. Recent articles in The Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times highlight the OEM's plight … - "Canceling the A380 altogether should be an option on the table." (TWSJ, June 20, Richard Aboulafia, Teal Group) - "Last week’s shock warning that A380 deliveries would be delayed by six to seven months because of production problems has plunged Airbus and EADS, its parent company, into crisis." (F.T., June 21) Also following the announcement, leasing... -
Analogies Tend to Grow on You
- Thursday June 22, 2006Analogies tend to grow on you. Kind of like E. coli tends to grow on room-temperature beef. Here at AMT we have been busier than a one-legged man in a butt kicking contest lately. This week, I decided to have a little fun with my blog and share some of my favorite analogies. Here are a few that come to mind: "The sardines were packed as tight as the coach section of a 747." How's that for a backwards analogy? Sadly, I guess you could use that for just about any airline these days. From Ralph Hood's Airport Business blog "Ground Clutter" last week: "When people worry, the guvmint gets involved faster'n an episode of Desperate Housewives can get around to sex. From a mechanic in Birmingham, AL (posted on AMTonline.com forum). "Pilots... -
DayJet Starts Flying This Year
- Monday June 19, 2006DayJet plans to revolutionize charter with 239 Eclipse jets that it already has on order. Somebody has been revolutionizing charter since the Wright Brothers first charged for a sightseeing ride, but I’m still a sucker for a new idea. DayJet is another of those aviation companies formed by smart business people with past successes in other industries. I'd laugh, but I remember laughing at FedEx, so I restrain myself. DayJet has several new—or almost new—ideas. First, the company spent much time and money on a unique computer program that will supposedly work miracles. I don’t understand that program, so will not discuss it.  Second, DayJet has those 239 Eclipse VLJs on order, and VLJs have been... -
Sabotage on the Assembly Line
- Tuesday June 13, 2006As I scanned through the newsfeeds this morning looking for news items to upload to our website, I couldn’t believe my eyes as I read one of the articles. In disbelief, I had to re-read the article in front of me on my computer monitor. Sure enough, my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me. There in black and white was an AP news item titled Airbus Launches Investigation After Three Cables Cut On A380 Being Assembled. It talked about an incident last week where some cables were cut on an A380 on the assembly line. It appears that the "cables" referred to in the article were electrical wires. It is still early in the investigation, but Airbus believes the wires were intentionally cut. If that is the case, I hope they find the... -
To Land or Not To Land
- Monday June 12, 2006I am a devotee—some say fanatically so—of the free market. Lately, however, I have been a bit worried about the marketplace when it comes to the airline industry. I worry about airline use of marginal airports like Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (the name of the place is longer’n the runway) and Midway. You can argue all day about my use of that word "marginal", but I have heard so many heavy-iron pilots complain about those airports (strictly off the record, of course) that I have become a believer. Use of these and other marginal airports seem to serve the free market, at least in the short run. They are cheaper and/or more convenient for airline and/or passengers. In the long run? I worry. One... -
A Questionable Approach
- Wednesday June 7, 2006Reading the mission of the Business Travel Coalition (BTC), via its website (www.btcweb.biz), finds the following: “Our organization seeks to bring transparency to travel industry policies and practices so that customers can influence industry and public policy issues of strategic importance to them.†Founded in 1994 and based in Radnor, PA, the BTC does a good job of getting its PR into the general media. Its most recent position, however, is one that seems a bit farfetched. On June 1, BTC came out in support of a call by the U.S. House to have the General Accountability Office (GAO) study the “best use of a Dallas Love Field closed to commercial airline traffic.†This falls in line with BTC’s other position... -
Are You Successful?
- Wednesday June 7, 2006"Whatever you do, don’t become stagnant!" Those were some of the first words of advice given to me when I joined the ranks of the gainfully employed. How true those words are. Striving to continuously improve ourselves is the difference between success and failure. It’s the difference between just showing up for a paycheck and truly excelling in our careers. So what defines career success? In his Aviation Interpersonal Maintenance Management course, Global Jet Services president J.D. McHenry shares tips for career success. He says that there are two main types of career expansion. One is a vertical expansion. That is where we take on more and more responsibility and seek out jobs with more status and responsibility. For... -
Does The Sun Shine More Brightly?
- Monday June 5, 2006Are things finally looking up for the airline industry? Delta—though operating in bankruptcy—actually made a profit in a recent month, airplanes are flying with more seats full at higher fares, capacity is down, and even the legacy airlines are looking better for the future. Dare we hope? Interestingly, The Economist, one of the world's most respected magazines, predicted several months ago that this would happen. In fact, it predicted that the airline industry was on the edge of a long and prosperous period. I was floored, but have learned to pay attention to that magazine, so did not snort derisively. Glad I didn't. Basically, The Economist then, and others now, seem convinced that the industry has, finally, made... -
Shutterbugs Wanted!
- Thursday June 1, 2006This past year has been a fun one to be involved with AMTonline.com. Thanks to you, our website has continued to expand the offerings to aircraft maintenance professionals. Starting with our website re-design in March of 2005, we have focused on continuing to grow this website. We have added numerous new features including a job listing through our partner CareerBuilder.com, a new expanded Forum section, online IA renewal seminars, daily news updates, and of course this blog where I have had plenty of fun (albeit extra work) posting regular columns. One of the new features on our website is our photo slideshow on our homepage. I looked to a sister website firehouse.com for this idea. You see, firehouse.com readers send in photos to the...
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