RDU Jetblast
Veteran
Silent, The FAA is budget bound and tangled up in red tape. The feds can't even replace many inspectors that are retiring. There are some enterprising mechs who "consult" but that requires them to leave everyone behind while they remain overseas for several months at a tiime. Not everyone will do that.
I'm pretty sure airlines don't fly the aircraft empty to the countries where maintenance is being performed. They fly with pasengers and/or freight to the hangar and rotate the aircraft back into service when it is ready.
Look at what virtually all troubled airlines complain about while laying off: Wages, pensions, healthcare. Then there is capital investments to operate the hangar, rent isn't cheap. Equipment and tools used to work on or around aircraft are hugely expensive to purchase and then to maintain in tip top condition. That requires different maintenance crews all together. Facility maintenance, ground support maintenance, equipment maintenance. And don't forget environmental laws. A lot of chemicals are used in a hangar and the EPA is strict. Then there is the aircraft leases. Airlines used to pay cash for their fleet. Now, just like cars, they lease. In good times or bad, you have to make that monthly payment or they repo man will show up at your door.
What will halt the slide? A supercharged economy. Import/export laws that promote protectionism -which are never popular in a global economy.
I live in a part of the country where furniture factories shutdown every week because of "increased competition from overseas". But what these CEO's don't say while they shed crocodile tears is that they are moving the factories overseas themselves. There is no competion. The Chinese aren't creating industry. They just provide cheap labor laws. You can still buy Broyhill, Bernhardt and Lazyboy furniture. But look at the labels. They all say made in China. But the price of furniture isn't any cheaper. The profit margin is higher.
Like everything else, it is all about the money. You know? it is a perverted cycle. Everyone want's their 401ks to grow big, but to do that, companies have to increase profits. And to increase profits, they have to pay low wages or ship them offshore.
I'm pretty sure airlines don't fly the aircraft empty to the countries where maintenance is being performed. They fly with pasengers and/or freight to the hangar and rotate the aircraft back into service when it is ready.
Look at what virtually all troubled airlines complain about while laying off: Wages, pensions, healthcare. Then there is capital investments to operate the hangar, rent isn't cheap. Equipment and tools used to work on or around aircraft are hugely expensive to purchase and then to maintain in tip top condition. That requires different maintenance crews all together. Facility maintenance, ground support maintenance, equipment maintenance. And don't forget environmental laws. A lot of chemicals are used in a hangar and the EPA is strict. Then there is the aircraft leases. Airlines used to pay cash for their fleet. Now, just like cars, they lease. In good times or bad, you have to make that monthly payment or they repo man will show up at your door.
What will halt the slide? A supercharged economy. Import/export laws that promote protectionism -which are never popular in a global economy.
I live in a part of the country where furniture factories shutdown every week because of "increased competition from overseas". But what these CEO's don't say while they shed crocodile tears is that they are moving the factories overseas themselves. There is no competion. The Chinese aren't creating industry. They just provide cheap labor laws. You can still buy Broyhill, Bernhardt and Lazyboy furniture. But look at the labels. They all say made in China. But the price of furniture isn't any cheaper. The profit margin is higher.
Like everything else, it is all about the money. You know? it is a perverted cycle. Everyone want's their 401ks to grow big, but to do that, companies have to increase profits. And to increase profits, they have to pay low wages or ship them offshore.
