FlyingForEternity

Hello all.

A friend of mine who is mid-level Delta employee told me that the master plan regarding regional flying is to phase out the 50 seat product by 2015 and reinvent most markets with a mix of mainline and larger DCI airframes.

I do not have a source to quote other than word of mouth and I am looking to see if anyone else has heard this or perhaps if anyone has any more concrete information?

formeraa

While I don't have any sources within DL, it doesn't surprise me at all. Many aviation experts have strongly suggested that the 50-seat jets are simply uneconomical to operated at $80+ oil. Their analysis finds that many smaller communities (particularly those within a 90-120 minute drive of a larger airport) are simply going to lost all air service. They also state that 50-seat jet will be totally gone from US fleets by 2020, unless there is a sustained drop in oil prices below $80.

DLdweeb

"Reinvent" most markets??? Now I'm a little nervous. Anytime DL tries to reinvent something....oh well.

Welcome news if true, only about 3 years too late.

FlyingForEternity

What he meant by that was a study to determine, whether markets that now only have say 10x daily CRJ service can survive a mix of 5x mainline/larger gauge DCI.

dilbertsdaddy

Two responses:

1. Good news!

2. I can't stand this for three more years!

readywhenyouare

I would be very surprised if all CRJ-200's are gone by 2015. Delta does not have enough aircraft to fill the void left by retiring the crj's. Delta is also at their max number of CRJ-700/900 and E170/175 allowed by their pilots. Now I would love it if DL would tell the pilots to take a hike and order more of the bigger regional aircraft but I'm guessing it's easier said than done.

Throw Down Your Leavy Screens

Translation of the translation: The three- or four-times-a-day ASA CR2 that flies from ATL to VLD, ABY, TLH, GNV, etc., will now become a twice-a-day CR9 or E170. Woohoo -- first-class to Valdosta!


Serious question though: if they're phasing out the CR2, does that mean that they are also phasing out the E135/E145, which are the Embraer equivalents of the CR2?

FlyingForEternity

That came to my mind also. I believe that Delta's contract with ALPA allows for unlimited 50 seat flying. However, the contract has a scope clause which limits the 76-seat flying (E170/CRJ70/90) to a number that has been reached.

My best guess would be that Delta's ALPA would come back and suggest a model based on JetBlue, where mainline crews fly the E190 at lower pay.

DTWflyer

This "rumor" in its exact form in false.

DL has over 400+ 50 seat RJs on contract from a variety of regional airlines. The contracts with many of these airlines extend beyond 2015.

For example:
Pinnacle's Air Service Agreement for 50 seat CRJs runs through 2017. DL (inherited from NW) is the leaseholder on Pinnacle's CRJs which are subleased to PCL. These RJs are from the 1999-2005 era and still have a lot of life left in them.

ASA's Air Service agreement runs through 2020.

I don't know the others off the top of my head like Skywest, but the bulk of the 50 RJ capacity is still under contract until the later part of the decade. There are certainly clauses in the contract where DL can reduce the amount of capacity purchased but really cannot just wholesale eliminate it all from the fleet without significant penalty.

Also, keep in mind how much of the fleet the 50 seat RJs currently make-up. There is no way that DL is going to shed all of that in the next 3 years. Heck, they are still trying to shed DC-9 capacity and still have limited back-fill.

I know the 50-seaters are the aircraft that FT-ers love to hate, but they do serve a role in the network.

Comair's fleet is being drawn-down and DL will continue to remove 50 seat RJs where they can but they will most certainly be around until the end of the decade if not longer.

N830MH

Perhaps, can DL will acquisition the E-190 from B6? Can they take some E-190 to freeing up flying elsewhere from ATL, DTW, MEM, MSP. SLC, LAX, or JFK too. Can they have a consider to take some bunch E90 from B6 who already selling 11 aircraft.

OnTheSlopes

I can't imagine DL flying even a 700 into a close regional airport (LWS) for us. Those planes are usually not even close to full as is. And, as of I think 2 months ago the schedule was already cut back a decent bit. Id be shocked and happy if the 200s disappeared, but I can't imagine anything larger flying to certain markets.