More Penny Pinching...
 

Not that this rises to the level of a national crisis, but it does not bode well for weary road warriors, as investments in "service" clearly take a turn for the worse:

Admirals Club® and AAdvantage Platinum Service Center Closings

In response to the recent tragic events and the current state of the airline industry, regretfully we have closed six Admirals Clubs and five AAdvantage Platinum Service Centers indefinitely. The Admirals Club locations are Cleveland, Detroit, Honolulu, George Bush International Airport in Houston, Nashville, and Phoenix. Additionally, while we have closed the Miami Concourse D Club, we have opened a temporary Club on the B Concourse and continue to operate the Club on Concourse E. The AAdvantage Plantinum Service Centers that have closed are located at Chicago O'Hare, Dallas/Ft. Worth Terminals A and B, Miami and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Not that this rises to the level of a national emergency, but it does not bode well for weary travelllers, as investments in "service" clearly are taking a turn for the worse.

Do I have this right? Don't we buy those memberships? I can see a temporary closing, but not forever. Yikes!

I may be in the minority here, but it's the kind of wording above that bothers me. Carriers seem to preface any announcement of service and personnel cuts with the standard "tragic events" phrase followed by the "current state of the industry" line, i.e. implied cause and effect.

Of course there is some truth to this, but I think we all agree the industry was in trouble well before 9/11. Linking the events of 9/11 to the current state of the industry seems too simplistic. It also seems a bit disingenuous because many of the cuts and changes were most likey planned (and some already implemented) well before 9/11. The airlines seem to be using the 9/11 shield to deflect customer uproar to further service cuts.

I hope this type of argument does not become the standard justification for everything carriers decide to do (or not to do) and for their performances in the months to come.

Sorry - just venting.

Sadly, you're not venting - just stating the obvious.

It seems the majors (in the US and Europe) basically have thier heads up thier backsides.

While I haven't flow them, I have to applaud EasyJet and Ryanair over here in the UK.

Ryanair has started a campaign to get people flying with £9 fares (ow). Jeez, at those prices, I'm even tempted to forego MP Miles, schlep over to Stansted, and squish my legs for an hour or two and hop over to Italy.

Furthermore, they have pledge to make no one redundant, and are taking delivery of new aircraft. I think they have some business acumen, unlike some other airlines.

Didn't these carriers just get $15 billion?

Maybe I misunderstood them, but from the way the news anchors are talking, I don't think the $15 billion in aid has been finalized, has it? On the Today Show this morning several guests and reports mentioned the debate in congress that is currently going on over the aid to airlines.

UA has also closed some unmanned RCC's.

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Who is John Galt?
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The airlines are complaining that the money isn't getting there fast enough.

http://www.msnbc.com/news/634720.asp

Just saw on the moving ticker on (0210 EST) MSNBC that AA reported recieving half their share.
Mike