Originally Posted by jetsfan92588

Specific to Delta pilots right now, my understanding is that Delta is already trying to hire/train as many pilots as they can, there just aren't enough. There's already a shortage, so even 25% quitting could bring operations down, because it's not as if Delta can just fly fewer planes and just ride it out. If this were a law firm for example - they could maybe just take fewer clients, their fixed costs would remain, but labor is by far their largest cost. Delta needs planes to move around in specific ways, and is not setup for a large reduction in force, and the resulting extreme reduction in routes or frequency of routes becomes very obvious, very quickly, to the flying public. And those people will be forced to choose a different airline. And given the incredible effort and massive amounts Delta spends to keep flyers "loyal", that would all go down the drain, as loyalty here isn't really loyalty, it's paid for.