Originally Posted by exerda[/quote

I don't see any problem in courting the infrequent-flyer business, per se; I've long said that airlines need all customers, and that those designed for niche-only markets have failed almost every single time (think those all-C TATL airlines, or Hooters Air, for example). Jeff & Co. have decided that they don't need loyal-but-lower-revenue pax, or even HVF who happen to be flying today on a cheap fare (and they continue to think that; see the recent suggestion that they hold back cheaper tickets so they can sell more last-minute fares, as if there's a magical demand to fill all those last-minute buckets).

There's also the problem that the current management seems to be very transaction-oriented. You see this in the way they punish a HVF who isn't flying full-fare today, or how they look at their glorious "network" on a per-segment basis rather than holistically. This is short-sighted in business in general and in the airline world in particular.