More Bumpy Fights...due to cost cutting?
 

I fly a ton on Delta But also on USair and American. The last few months have been mostly bumpy flights. The airlines seem less worried about bumps, less likely to fly higher or lower to avoid he chop. I wonder if they don't want to spend e extra fuel?

no announcements from the pilots re requests to be assigned a different altitude or other pa about the bumps?

Seriously? So you expect DL, USair and AA to control the weather now?

No, I expect them to avoid the bumps if possible. I just don't see them trying to avoid them like they used to.

Ever thought that maybe they were - maybe the bumps you're experiencing on your flight are the least severe in the air you're traveling through. It would cost them more money to fly through dirty air (decreased aerodynamics) than it would be for them to re-route a little.

In fact I was just on a flight with DL last month where they did a significant re-route in order to avoid a storm - and guess what, we even arrived early!

You're being a little conspiracy theory nutty I think - take the tin foil hat off and enjoy some fresh air. :D

Spring and Summer are always bumpier due to more unstable air.

I've noticed that most of the destinations I've flown to the southern US the last couple months seem hotter than in years past. This must be due to cost cutting. The airlines are refusing to air condition the outside air at their destinations properly!

This is weather 101, also pilots can only report chop and request a diff altitude, ultimately it's up to ATC if they can change. It's possible that ATC simply denies their request to change alt for whatever reason like traffic or weather.

You might notice a difference if your flights are more likely to be RJs or smaller and lighter planes. Big heavy planes are less susceptible to weather.

LOL

This is the funniest post I have seen in months.:D

I think you actually fooled some people into thinking you were serious!

+1 - Maybe it's SHARES and the AA bankruptcy's fault.

I thought it was caused by SkyPesos.

More Bumpy Fights...due to cost cutting?
 

OP, are you serious?

As a nervous flier (yes, still), I hate chop as much as the next person. But to think that the home base in ATL told the pilot of my flight tonight to fly through the squall line over the planes, and damn the possible consequences, is ridiculous.

I obviously can't speak for pilots, but i imagine they want to land alive just as much as you do. And while turbulence in flight may be aggravating and scary, it is, 99.999% of the time, an issue of comfort and not safety.

An interesting and appropriate skeptical question.

No, I don't believe the purported increase in bumps you're feeling are due to fuel considerations. I don't recall a flight this year with meaningful bumps where the pilot didn't say "we're looking for a new route," or something of the sort.

What ratio of flights have you had year-over-year where you felt this was the case? We're they the same routes at the same season?

Hardly, to answer you question.

Almost every time you hear a flight check in with a new ATC center controller they still ask "How are the rides?".

And they will usually request a different altitude if PIREPs are bad enough.