77D/2-cabin 772 enters service today

[FrugalFlyerv2.0]

by your logic, AA should have been pulling fares on par with DL in ATL-LGA but they didn't.
 

I really hate doing this because for one I don't have time to kill searching various databases and I hate calling BS on your posts (although knowing your DL uber alles MO it should be a standard protocol).
From what I was able to find in ~10 minutes, I see that fares on LGA-ATL at $347-$639 on DL and, surprise surprise almost no difference on AA $370-$640.  I'd call that as good as or better, wouldn't you?

 

[WorldTraveler]

A single fare search doesn’t say what is happening on a large scale basis for any airline.
That is why the DOT uses a statistically valid sample of virtually all tickets on US airlines in order to know the big picture of an airline’s performance.
You simply will not be able to look at unpublished fares such as with corporate travel managers but that goes into how the overall average in a route.
While you and others seem to think that I am always beating up on AA, let’s keep in mind that AA’s decision to not restructure in BK sooner left it for a number of years with costs well above other carriers, including DL which at various points enjoyed a CASM advantage of 10% or more relative to AA.

At the same time, DL’s mega merger which was the first in the industry, gave it the opportunity to focus on what it needed to gain strategically beyond what its merger could deliver. Every merger left a certain amount of things on any carrier’s to-do list.
DL realized that LHR and Latin America was a weak point so invested in 3 foreign airlines that gave DL an inside track at those companies and the ability to cooperate exclusively with them. DL’s investments in those companies have yielded solid growth in those markets. DL also moved aggressively to get rid of those things in its network that do not meet minimum financial targets.
UA has done far less of this but is moving more aggressively now to fix what is broken, with less focus on building what it still doesn’t have.
WN is taking a fairly balanced approach to cutting what doesn’t work and growing into new markets.
Even before the merger, AA started expanding into key markets that it strategically needed. AA has done a lot less cutting. US had already gone thru both the cut and grow phase and was working fairly well within its size restrictions. And there is evidence that AA is finding more success in its DFW-Asia growth than it has seen in LAX, ORD, or NYCCC.
Thus, AA realizes well that it has to catch up with what other carriers have done or are doing, and “neutralize” other carriers’ growth into key AA markets including DL in LHR and Latin America and LCCs into Latin America. Further, AA, whether you want to hear it or not, is having to face the consequences of DL’s aggressive growth and AA’s retreat in NYC which has effects on a number of markets around the world.
You may see these conversations as me picking on AA but they reflect much larger and longer-term significant strategic changes that are taking place in the industry.

 

[jcw]

Wait a minute - now we are saying you can't look at a single fare - amazing how one poster can use a single stat and claim it proves DL is superior then when someone else does its treated as irrelevant - double standard is in full effect

 

[WorldTraveler]

average fare is NOT a single fare.

it is the average of all of tickets that a carrier flew in the market... a statistically representative sample.

the average fare has completely and accurately shown that DL continues to increase its presence in NYC at the expense of AA.

like AA's fall in average fares in Latin America, the only surprise is how quickly it has all happened in NYC.

 

[jcw]

translation - see if I do it's ok - it's like the LAX-LHR route discussion - I changed the topic to the fares between ORD and LGA using some radom stat to say DL rules the world - it's called double standard

 

[WorldTraveler]

you said the same thing in the other thread.

the point is that YOU don't want to include any other cities, esp. from NYC because doing so would show that AA wasn't able to defend itself in NYC so you don't want to hear that the same thing will happen in LAX.

best part of this industry is that we will eventually find out how well DL has done and how far AA is willing to go to to try to keep DL from establishing itself in the market.

AA's history is of not competing very well with DL or low cost carriers and it is because all of them have lower costs than AA has.

AA had the lowest CASM among the big 3 and then gave it up as part of the price for getting the merger approved.

 

[jcw]

yes and DL lead the way of driving margins down by 47%

 

[WorldTraveler]

that's what happens when you account for taxes and pass out profit sharing.

I'm sure AA's employees are tickled pink at AA's industry leading margins while watching their peers at DL get handed checks which represent 15% annual profit sharing - on top of pay raises.

 

[700UW]

What raises?

That's not till April.

 

[jcw]

that's what happens when you account for taxes and pass out profit sharing.

I'm sure AA's employees are tickled pink at AA's industry leading margins while watching their peers at DL get handed checks which represent 15% annual profit sharing - on top of pay raises.

 
Have you filed a complaint with the SEC over AA's questionable accounting practices
 
Once again how is your list coming along?

 

[WorldTraveler]

What raises?

That's not till April.

 
DL employees have received more and larger raises than any other employee group since 2007 which was the last group of airlines that emerged from BK before AA. DL employees will receive another raise in April.



 

Have you filed a complaint with the SEC over AA's questionable accounting practices
 
Once again how is your list coming along?

my list contains markets where AA is underperforming the industry.

It could go on for pages.

 

[jcw]

bless your heart - you can't even put one thing down in writing that DL does wrong - it therefore proves the point you are not even remotely objective when it comes to DL - its very, very, very sad
 
DL must miss you so much
 
Keep up the daily affirmations
 
Hail to DL, Hail to DL, Hail to DL

 

[WorldTraveler]

I haven't written down lists of positives or negatives for any carrier.

I have provided plenty of markets where AA has and is underperforming the industry.

having to read that truth is clearly highly difficult for you to do - your reactions validate the pain you suffer in reading that AA isn't delivering the revenue that you and others think they are.

They may be in a position where they are gaining in some markets relative to UA but remember that data is months behind reality in this industry.

 

[700UW]

And yet the non-union DL employees still arent earning the wages they made before bankruptcy.

 

[jcw]

how can you say that WT won't agree - they get profit sharing - that is the cure for all compensation issues
 
get ready for really long post from WT