mersk862

It did come up and it was mostly IT related. It works fine if you're doing something simple - an all-DL/NW itinerary, which is what 90%+ of all award tickets are. It's when you throw in the code-shares and partners that everything goes wacky. It's something they are aware of and they do want to fix it, but again it goes back to having an old system in Deltamatic.

WBurcham

You mean first tier airports like ATL, MIA, ORD, DFW, IAH, JFK where major international connections can be made.

WBurcham

I would say that Mike generated far more discussion amongst the DL people and FT'ers for his letter and the method with which it was presented to the group than anything else in the Q&A.

MikeMpls

Or first-tier networks where major international connections can be made: MSP, LAX, SEA, SLC, IAD, BOS, ... ? This ridiculous "back at you" in a vain attempt to denigrate WN is absurd. If you like to fly WN & they don't serve your favorite airport, pick another airline. I've done that three times already this year, and WN is still our preferred domestic carrier; in fact, two of those trips (& couple CO codeshares) are the only business DL/NW has gotten from us in 4 months). We're saving lots of money & our tickets will drop by almost 50% when I get my companion pass. Odds are WN will still be around & profitable when UA & eventually maybe even DL are in liquidation.

One thing I've learned in the last year is that loyalty to a single airline is almost never rewarded in kind. One needs to be flexible and pick the airlines that work best for different needs.

MikeMpls

Actually, "it ain't so". I did get to ask my question of Bob Soukup shortly after Jeff left, and I did talk to Bob during the dinner. However, so much of Jeff's presentation directly addressed my issues that the wind was largely taken out of me. You may recall that I had posted in advance in the NW forum exactly what I intended to do.

And I think the handout (wish I'd had 10-20 more copies) got into enough hands that more people understand our side.

I couldn't ask for much more.

res1968

It actually does not work for even the most simple tasks. If the calendar says low is available, then low should show up when you go to the flights page. Instead, you get flights that book for 200,000 miles. This is on the simplest of itineraries. I am disappointed this was not recognized as a major concern and discussed at the meeting.

MarkXS

I don't think that's fair to MikeMPLS. I've certainly had my share of disagreements with Mike about the merger and DL in general. But I think he's done a heck of a great job pulling together the list of gains/losses and facilitating it getting to DL execs.^^

It also makes perfect sense to remind the DL execs of what didn't work before, especially since not all current DL management was at DL back then. "Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it."

tkey75

Careful, Mike. I can name off hand at least a dozen threads with your attempts to denigrate DL (and tout the grand magic of WN) with ridiculous "back at you" statements.

ADLFO

They get it, I can assure you, they get it. Do they have the same frustrations we have? No, but from their end, I can tell you I heard the frustration in their voices. Josh did a great job and injected an appropriate amount of humor into the discussion, but bottom line, he gets it.

Jeff used the word BROKEN (in all caps) when referring to PMUs, but it became apparent to me over the course of the discussion that Deltamatic is even more BROKEN. The trouble isn't in realizing the issues, I believe they truely do understand the major ones, but more that they have not yet discovered a cost effective and cost efficient way to fix the IT problems at DL. If the solution isn't affordable, then it really isn't a solution.

I'm not tech savy enough to understand why they couldn't adopt NW's IT solutions, including PARS, make it bigger with more hardware, and port all the DL info over into it. Apparently, they tried in vain to do just that but failed. I just hope that there is a team trying to figure out how to get DLs IT into the 21st century. I got the impression that such a global fix should be near the top of DLs "list".

StayingHomeIsBetter

It was meant tongue-in-cheek. I have already separately thanked Mike for his significant efforts. His list was a big stick, as in "walk softly and carry a big stick."

Or, as my father who grew up in eastern Kentucky used to say "If you want to talk to a mule, you first have to get its attention. A 2 by 4 often comes in handy."

Mike... thanks again for preparing the 2 by 4 for the meeting.

tonypct

Bold in your post is mine. Amen! Case closed! And yes, it is that easy!

MikeMpls

NW's PARS is also a dinosaur built originally on S/360 systems in the 1960's. My take on it is that switching to PARS would be one step forward, 3/4 step back. It would only delay the inevitable conversion to a modern DB system. There's a little (not much) more info on their history in the "Detailed log..." thread in the NW forum.

me4yankees

I got the same impression/feeling. They get it, they just have not figured out a way to cost effectively fix it all.

I also got the impression that if we had individual issues or problems, we could contact them directly. Josh seemed especially interested in knowing about specific web glitches and to send them to him with the specific details, so he could perhaps get someone at DL to try the same transaction, so they could see it on their end and try to fix it.

As to my notes, I copied as much from the slides as possible, word-for-word, and kept the style/emphasis, such all caps or quotes, if something was written that way. So about 95% of what I posted was written in their words/style, not mine.

troyintn

I have to agree 100% with that statement. That is the challenge in the airline industry.

KeaauFlyer

^^This is an important point that will gradually become evident over time, even to some of the "hub slaves" who don't think they have any alternatives.

As someone who has already voted with his feet (and dollars,) I would just like to add that Jeff Robertson does not have a sterling reputation on FT for being completely honest. His obfuscations, broken promises, and one outright lie were a prime reason for my switch to CO/AA, a move which has been a very positive experience.