There was a good article on OMAAT about the economics of pilot pay and the airlines. One sentence in particular caught my eye for the economics of the Delta contract for a one way long haul flight: "meaning the pilots alone would be earning around $25,000 for the one-way flight. That doesn’t factor in any of their other benefits (health insurance, profit sharing, etc.) they’re receiving."
Essentially saying how the Delta contract is going to put United at a significant cost disadvantage, since United would have to match this pay and they have much more of a long haul operation. The $25,000 figure would simply be pilot pay, not accounting for their benefits, pay for other groups, fuel, slots, taxes etc. Seems to me the only way for airlines to make this up, would be even higher fares. I cannot imagine how this is sustainable.
Here is the article:
https://onemileatatime.com/insights/...ng_haul_flying