And now with this swine flu thing, people are starting to get worried about flying into the U.S., and Americans are starting to get antsy about flying, period. Hopefully this will be cleared up quickly.

However, nothing could top Cigarman, the FAs and execs that served us on Mystery Flight 2!

That loss was essentially unavoidable. Had they not hedged, the consolidated fuel bill from the 2nd qtr 08 through the 1st qtr 09 would have been far greater.

Of course, they could have made or lost somewhat off what their hedge amounted to, but only marginally.

Exactly if he was a numbers guy and he is then he wouldn't of hedged all the fuel bets. To me he didn't do his job. He gambled and lost big time. I think Co should be looking to another leader soon. The stock is not doing good and also the FA's are upgrading non-revs first before the qualified elites. The whole company is in a turmoil. I can truly predict the price of CO stock will hit below the 52 week low before the end of this year due to Larry's gamble and the way he runs CO. Watch and you shall see.

This is laughable. One of the more absurd posts I've seen on FT.

CO's "gamble" in fuel hedges came in mid-08 when fuel prices were at their highest, and even then, they limited their hedging going into 2009. They gambled and lost, yes, but they are reasonably well positioned through the rest of the year in that they will be paying market rates for fuel, still substantially lower than 2008. Comparatively, they hedged better than other carriers, specifically DL.

While it is conceivable that CO's stock could dip below it's 52-week low in the near future, it's because of the industry-wide demand collapse and CO's exposure to the swine flu-stricken Mexico market. Even if that happens, Continental will not be looking for a new leader any time soon.

I suppose you were one of the guys predicting $200+/bbl oil last July?

Nope I didn't predict nothing, Larry did with his fuel bets and lost. So who's laughing now? But I am now predicting CO will go below it's 52 week low before the end of this year due to way CO is ran and the GA's and FA's don't care as told by many FTer's on this forum. It's a shame that this has to happen. How can FA's upgrade non-revs first before A PAYING qualified elite flyer and think they can get away with it is because of Larry and the way he runs CO. We will see how long he stays on. Time will tell.

You make it seem like that is SOP for CO, which it clearly is not. With the PDA site, many of us have been able to keep the GAs and FAs honest, and quickly reported those who were in violation. Why are you so anti-CO?

I PREDICT that CO will emerge as one of the nation's strongest airlines over the next 6-12 months.

Huh?

I think we already are.

I agree, this is totally his fault.

I was introduced to Larry a couple months back in the FLL PC, and flew with him to IAH. He spent a great deal of time before departure making sure he met and chatted with the entire crew - he only returned to his seat at departure. I certainly got the impression he was very interested in interacting with his employees, but did not disrupt them during the flight.

You wouldn't need the pda site if the GA's and the FA's were trained correctly and was told if caught doing illegal upgrades you will be terminated.

Ran into a GA at CLE that looked an awful lot like LK. Silly me asked the question (Do you get asked the same question I'm asking you now...)

He (the GA; only "met" LK for a few seconds at DO III) was a cool guy. Forgot his name though.

Flew with LK about 18 months ago. After he boarded late and removed my computer bag from the (SMALLER then UA has ) overhead, he sat in his FC seat.

From about 10 min past takeoff until 10 min prior to landing he stood and talked to the F/A's in the front galley. He knew a brief bio on 2 or so of them. Was refreshing them on CO standards. Even spoke to many pax (me included-traded cards) who chatted him up!!

All-in-all, he seemed like a "people person" with a large calculator!

Get your facts straight. GAs do upgrades, not FAs. And many FAs, myself included, will upgrade elites on the list that the GA "missed" (generally, is in such a hurry to close the door one minute early that certain things like taking care of customers are no longer important). You need an attitude adjustment.

I dont need nothing adjusted. Go on the the main forums and see how many complaints about FA's upgrading non-revs with proven facts. Also as to my attitude, it's none of your business. Stick to the issue! I am only pointing out facts that are proven! Unless you can disprove all those topics about FA's upgrading non-revs before qualified elites then you should adjust your own attitude before adjusting mine's. Also the stock price of CO has been sinking like the titanic which is ALSO a FACT. Case close!