They would be better off having a separate C-level person in charge of customer loyalty; I'm sure there is someone already in that slot, but no idea if they are not doing their job well, or just not empowered enough to make an impact. The fact will always remain, the CEO will have a completely opposite goal than the traveler will. The traveler wants to have as good an experience for as little money as possible, and in the case of the frequent traveler, get as much free stuff as possible along the way; the Big Boss is beholden to the shareholders who want to see as much profit with as little expense as possible. While our relationship with the Execs has room for improvement, we will never see 100% eye-to-eye on everything.

Use the recent domestic F meal upgrades. The leader in charge of that project was directed to do it in a cost-neutral manner; I dont have all the inner workings but I would imagine that was the only major constraint put on the project. And while I miss having a shortbread on my short hop to Philly, I think most of us see the overall change as a positive one, even though there was a lot of compromise. This is the kind of leadership that needs to oversee the whole customer relationship, and they must be empowered to do their jobs. Let Doug Parker count the beans but let someone else take care of customer loyalty, and let them have the tools and resources to do their jobs.

Also I think more employee appreciation would go a long way towards resolving some of the service-related complaints, as would a resolution to the many contract and labor issues. The "I overheard from a FA" rumors that pop up from time to time spread pretty quickly, and you end up with a lot of people *who never even fly US* hating the airline with no good reason.

Working power outlets at every seat (even in Y) at least on Mainline would put an end to the IFE issue. Most people have a smartphone, iPhone, iPad, tablet, electronic etch-a-sketch, anyway and prefer their own content to the predictably lame programming found on most flights; now that it only takes a few ounces to bring it all with you, traditional IFE's days are numbered (IMO) except on the long-haul flights. But not being able to charge your toys inflight is a real disadvantage.