AA reports healthy profit

[WorldTraveler]

apparently also highlights that the 773 can't do JNB even from MIA.

Air India apparently has a few 77Ls available... pieces spread everywhere.

 

[eolesen]

MIA-JNB is about 100mi outside the range of the 773ER.

MIA-CPT, however, is in range. Whether or not it is viable is a totally different question.

Could make an interesting tag from GRU, though.

 

[1AA]

AA just has to go and get that pesky 747-8 if they want to compete with the big International boys. When you fly a route at the end of its range it leaves little room for error. MD-11 comes to mind. How many times did the MD-11 have to make a fuel stop in Seattle or San Jose from DFW in order to continue on to Narita when the head winds were strong? I don't have that many fingers and toes. Maybe the new A350-900 might make the range. I hear we will have those in the fleet soon.

 

[Overspeed]

One of the more interesting tidbits from the "State of the Airline" report today: looking at acquiring 777-200LRs for ULH flying, specifically mentioned MIA-JNB.

Watch the video again. After being asked the question about flying to South Africa the answer was AA would need to buy 777LRs to make it. That AA would not buy a few specialized aircraft for one route segment.

 

[Overspeed]

sorry but there is no "typical" or "atypical" BK. AA was living on borrowed money and nothing more. Other carriers may have reached the end of their borrowing limit but AA got two rounds of concessions from its lenders and its employees. That isn't substantially different from what US did.I'm not sure what any of this matters other than that AA continues to benefit from BK aided cost reductions.As I have noted would be the case, AA is being dramatically helped by UA's blunders - but likely so is everyone else.AA has yet to do any of the integration work - labor or operational - that have plagued many other mergers.AA might well overcome it all but AA labor is not going to be any more content to accept low pay and record profits any more than US people were. THAT will be the thread that holds AA and US together.

The chart shown today on CASM was surprising. What happened to UA? CO was a well run airline before and I thought their management was running the new UA.

 

[dfw gen]

apparently also highlights that the 773 can't do JNB even from MIA.

Air India apparently has a few 77Ls available... pieces spread everywhere.

what an as*hole

 

[FWAAA]

MIA-JNB is about 100mi outside the range of the 773ER.

MIA-CPT, however, is in range. Whether or not it is viable is a totally different question.

Could make an interesting tag from GRU, though.

I'm guessing that the 77W or 772 could make it nonstop on the eastbound flight to South Africa but of course a fuel stop on the way back to MIA would be required - how about JNB-REC-MIA on the return flight?   REC adds about 90 miles over the nonstop great circle distance, not a huge penalty.  

 

[WorldTraveler]

a78hole because there are real facts on the table? it is precisely because of people and attitudes like you that discussions on this forum get as testy as they do.

By E's account, the 773 can't make the flight nonstop. AA execs apparently recognize that, short of acquiring 77Ls, they aren't going to operate nonstop to the US.

There aren't many copies of the 77L around, AC, DL, and EK haven't expressed any interest in getting rid of theirs. AA could order some and I'm sure Boeing would build them but is it really worth spending that much money for a couple aircraft that would likely serve just one route for AA? The local MIA-JNB market is just not big enough for AA to pull the local passengers over with a one stop.

further, there are likely other places that are cheaper to operate via other than Brazil if a stop has to be made.

A stopover in Brazil won't work because AA has to compete with DL who does offer nonstop in both directions. You can see what happened to the market when DL converted its S. Africa service to nonstop with the 77L (it was started as one stop with various 767s). SA has had to push its aircraft to operate nonstop when it can but it isn't necessarily economical, in both directions, or year round.

There is no reason for AA to enter a market that it cannot succeed in.

I'd still like to know if the 359 or 789 will ever be able to operate nonstop S. Africa to the US. And remember that the problem is not just about distance but about the high altitude at JNB and the relatively short runway at CPT and the fact that CPT is not near as big of a business destination as JNB.

 

[JFK Fleet Service]

 it is precisely because of people and attitudes like you that discussions on this forum get as testy as they do.
 

 
Does it hurt much hanging up there on the cross like that?

 

[WorldTraveler]

again, why can't YOU engage in a business-focused discussion of the issues without throwing insults? your childishness and inability to discuss what is involved in serving a potential market which was raised during the conference call is why threads like this that could be interesting go nowhere.

MIA is an ideal gateway to Africa.

AA might well be able to make MIA-JNB work but I doubt if the economics are there if they have to wait for 18 months to buy brand new 77Ls and then only have a couple of aircraft in the fleet.

There might be a few used 77Ls available but, given AA's displeasure with buying used aircraft, it is doubtful they would pursue that option.

given that AA genuinely needs to find longhaul routes that use its current assets and personnel, I'm not sure that looking at opportunities that involve new aircraft (to AA anyway) is the highest priority for Parker and co.

 

[AdAstraPerAspera]

Can't the 787 do MIA-JNB?

 

[swamt]

Great job on the 1st Q numbers guys.  I expect record profits for every Q thru 2014 and 15.  Really wish your union didn't give away the PS share.  The union literally gave away millions upon millions from retirement accounts.   BTW;  if it were still in place (whatever you guys had before the TWU gave it away) what would have been the numbers for PS?  Anyone able to throw some numbers out there to compare?

 

[WorldTraveler]

it is indeed a shame, swamt.

The closest comparison for what profit sharing could be is Delta Air Lines. DL calculates profit sharing on pre-tax earnings or profit; DL recorded $444 of pre-tax earnings for the 1st quarter and credited $99 million to employee profit sharing.

AA recorded $493 of pre-tax income which means the employees of AA/US could have received about $115 million of profit sharing if they had the same formula. All DL employee groups receive the same percentage of profit sharing and all non-mgmt. groups participate.

 

[Jacobin777]

You may not have caught my sarcasm.   
 
Parker never had to file for Ch 11 as HP had already done that years before he took over.   He was handed US Airways in 2005 as it exited from its second bankruptcy.   Parker didn't have to file for Ch 11 because the combined HP/US had very low payrates and very low labor costs compared to AA.
 
AA didn't "go bankrupt" in the typical sense.  Unlike most debtors,  AA had no shortage of money to borrow.   
 
AA filed for Ch 11 primarily to drive a stake thru the heart of labor and the lingering cries of "Restore and More."   AA's pilots and FAs wanted gains from 2008 until 2011 and AA was unwilling to hand out any gains.
 
My point to the US cheerleader is that there's a constant drumbeat that AA "went bankrupt" and thus that must be proof that every decision of prior AA management was sub-optimal.  Now, the new sheriff, Parker and his sidekick Kirby, are announcing all sorts of "changes" that are meant to deflect any critique of the poor management of US Airways.

 
The beauty is in the hyprocisy of the unions who were kicking, crying and screaming about the pay/bonus Arpey and Horton were recieving yet have no problems when Parker is making out with >$40 million and Kirby with >$20 million.

 

[Jacobin777]

Can't the 787 do MIA-JNB?

 
JNB is "hot and high" and the B787 would have "engine out" problems. The B789 would have to go weight limited.
 
Dubai is simpy "hot" but using quads or using evening/night flights alleviates many of the hot conditions.
 
The B777LR really doesn't have this problem. The B778X might not either. The A358XWB wouldn't have too much of a problem but not only did AA change their A358XWB order to the A359XWB but Airbus might cancel that model as well.