We are doing a mailbag episode of the Cranky Talk podcast, and as regular listeners know, we always love to hear what’s on your mind. (At least, Dave really loves it.) We have some questions already, but Dave is greedy and wants more. So, let’s hear what you’ve got rattling around in your brain these days. Leave a question here in the comments or email cf@crankyflier.com, and we’ll answer a handful on the next episode.
If you want to make sure your question gets picked, you should definitely have flowing praise for Dave, because he’s in charge of this rodeo.
19 comments on “It’s Time for a Mailbag Episode and I Need Your Questions”
Some general ideas & questions (for the podcast or future posts; and while I could Google these, I’d love to hear your views on them)…
* How are Avelo & Breeze doing?
* Looks like Northern Pacific is pivoting from Alaska/Asia to… Mexico?! Please discuss and/or interview someone on this, this is just waiting for your snark…
* How do Dave/Cranky think the US domestic ULCC flying experience(s) will be different in 2030 compared to now?
* Are ATC labor shortages still causing (or being blamed for) delays? How legitimate is this excuse, really?
* 737 Max update
* Best meals/drinks/restaurants/bars in airports, and why? (my vote would be for the nanobrewery gateside at TPA, just because they have beers that you can only get there, not because it’s great)
* Fearless predictions about fall/winter/holiday season air travel meltdowns (or lack thereof)
* What routes/destinations have been surprisingly successful this summer?
Is the regional model dying? At what point does it make more sense to fold the flying into mainline? Which regionals will fail first and which majors will win the regional market?
Kind of a follow up – what is the future for prop flying in the USA? I love the Q400 and no shortage of them here in Canada, but in the States it is shrinking with Alaska, part of whatever Connect is and a few ATRs for Silver. What keeps the prop from being a bigger part of regional flying Stateside?
…I’m sure Dave just loves a turboprop…
1. Do you foresee the COMAC C-Series ever being ordered by a North American carrier?
2. What are the product design directions that Airbus and Boeing plan to take?
3. Why can’t the FAA mandate a realistic passenger evacuation test?
4. Europe has proposed a super high-speed railway system that would spiderweb between every major city in the EU, hopefully providing a sustainable — and equally efficient — alternative to the very eco-unfriendly airline industry, covering the same distance in roughly the same time as short-haul flights door-to-door (If they can overcome political hurdles). Could even a subset of this work in the U.S.?
5. What is the status of NextGen?
1. Why don’t Mexican ULCCs go after CUN/SJD/PVR US-based tourists? Seems like they’d make a lot of money
2. How has the West Coast (up and down) changed in the last ten years in terms of the three major alliances? So much has changed in terms of AS joining OW, UA’s dominance seems less useful with Asia traffic so much lower.
3. How will TK react to UA/EK? Would delta try to snag them for a similar tie up? Similarly, how will delta react? They now seem to have a major hole in their network vs AA & UA (I don’t think Saudia counts)
4. What will it take for UA to add Australia to the UA/NZ JV? So many routes from AKL on NZ seem to require Australian transit
The EAS system is effectively a subsidized training platform for pilots so subsidized pilot training already exists. Say I’m wrong.
I got more: The EAS system is in desperate need of an overhaul; $8M subsidies to fly Denver Air Garbage from DEN – Kearny Nebraska are a waste of money and can physically never reach an semblance of importance other than shoveling money to incompetent airlines. What does an EAS overhaul look like?
Dave, why do you hate talking about airlines and airplanes? Show us on the doll where jetBlue touched you.
Here are a few for your perusal:
What are your thoughts on the rumors that American is going to ditch its international first class cabin?
To that same point in a different application, what are your thoughts on the use of A321XLRs to replace A321Ts on transcontinental flights (and reconfiguring that very specialized subfleet)?
To the larger point, is a international dedicated first class cabin a necessity going forward?
What are your thoughts on the future of regional airlines in the U.S.?
Would Frontier consider flying out of Long Beach to replace LAX?
How bad of a recession are we headed for ?
How has the US-India market changed in the past decade and what lies ahead?
ITA Airways prognosis…
Thanks for all you and team do. ???
What do you think is a good strategy for Alaska Airlines in the years ahead – Can they ever get past their Seattle Fortress for real growth? (Alaska’s sad small blips on analysis like this makes me wonder https://crankyflier.com/2022/08/09/the-cities-where-jetblue-thinks-it-needs-spirit-to-grow/ )
Are any of the global hubs (eg DXB) under real threat from opening of new routes, now that the A350 is (will) be available for Ultra Long Haul? Or will they be just a niche for the likes of QF and possibly NZ?
I remember Pan Am starting LAX-SYD with 747SP and the belief was the market for a 14 hour flight was small…….
1. supposedly Delta / KLM Airfrance has been tapped by italy as the winning bid for ITA. how long until that turns to a disaster? https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-31/italy-picks-certares-delta-air-france-klm-for-ita-airways-l7hc8k8o
2. A lot of ERJ’s, CRJ’s, and E-jet have to be nearing end of their life cycle. But, the ERJ and CRJ programs have totally stopped production. The e-jet has been replaced with E2 but that is too heavy for scope clauses. The Mitsubishi spacejet development has been indefinitely halted. Will regional flying go away altogether? If not, what aircraft will they use once current fleets hit retirement age?
I recently read that Embrarer is committed to keeping the E1 175 around for a while, so I think that’ll be the solution.
Maybe a way to sum up my questions is: “What do you think the “new normal” will look like in the next 5 to 10 years?”
1) Excluding the legacy the mergers that reduced the number of legacies from 6 to 3 have any of the mergers this century* been worthwhile?
*Frontier-Midwest, Southwest-Air Tran, and Alaska-Virgin America.
2) The extended range NEOs will be able to reach all of North and South America and most Europe from the Caribbean. Is anyone likely to attempt a three content Caribbean hub like the one Copa has built in Panama.
1) It seems the economic benefit of regionals is starting to erode as pilot pay goes up. Is the end of regionals near?
2) What do you see as the most significant “void” or unserved “niche” in the U.S. aviation market? Clearly, it wasn’t what aha! was chasing.