smxflyer

https://skift.com/2017/02/01/united-...s-doesnt-work/

Looks like there will be gradual improvements at IAD

transportprof

I like the quote about "the train to nowhere."

Sounds like there will be a train between Dulles and DC before there is a train between IAD security and (the majority of) United's gates.

hscottm

Its nice to see the refreshingly honest perspectives. of course some are "new perspective against what previous guy did" but Oscar has been through the whole Boeing 737 order.

Anyway, I like what I hear.

spin88

"They built a market. We gave away a market"

“A business customer will stay with you for a little bit of time,” Munoz said during a Jan. 23 question-and-answer session at United’s Dulles hub. [“And then] it’s just ‘I can’t do this anymore.’

"Munoz acknowledged using smaller planes on less profitable routes may seem prudent, but said in the long term, the strategy rarely works.

“It’s a self-fulfilling cycle,” Munoz said. “You’re flying large aircraft and you’re not making money so you start doing things. Eventually it leads to you start dropping price. [Then,] you’re not making money so you down-gauge”

[BTB, I'm sure these quotes are just made up, we all know that United's approach under Smisik/Keay was Delphi like]

And about that stupid el chip delux 737 old gen order?

"So in November, after CFO Andrew Levy and President Scott Kirby joined the company, United said it would defer 61 of the orders for the foreseeable future. And the four planes United will take instead will come as Boeing 737-800s, a larger aircraft.

“It’s simply adjusting very expensive acquisitions to make sure they are are going to be with us for a long time, and we don’t wake up with a lot of aircraft five years or 10 years from now and somebody says, ‘What the hell did you buy these for?’ Munoz told employees. “These are assets that are with us for many, many years.”

blueman2

If these quotes by Oscar are anywhere close to accurate, my respect for him continues to grow. You cannot solve a problem until you admit it is a problem.

Go Oscar!!!!

goodeats21

That is the first thing I was thinking. The much vaunted "management by spreadsheet - overall network be damned"...didn't turn out so well.

Interesting to see how long term plans develop now.

spin88

+1 And I second the "you go Oscar" thoughts. Give him a few years and if he implements these thoughts, I would consider going back to United (but not to a 10x 777 in Y if other options exist, not gonna catch me dead on that ghetto bird).

seenitall

To be kind, the train doesn't not allow PAX to go to Terminal C. Rather it goes about 1000 feet beyond Terminal C and requires PAX to walk back that remaining distance. The stop was put where it was because it was expected that UA would soon build a new terminal over where the stop is, but that hasn't happened.

Hipplewm

I haven't flown United once this year, been flying American up front (E75 and 319/321) for less money then flying RJ145's for United.

I am small potatoes, my 12 dollars won't matter, but I am at a small airport and I see more than just me doing this.

fly18725

While some of the quotes in the article may align with popular FlyerTalk talking points, they are revisionist in nature and ignore the underlying point: many of the tough integration-related task are behind United and they can now focus more on the future.

We should remember that much of the domestic shrinking came pre-merger. Attributing the proliferation of 50-seat regional jets to the prior management team is silly. Okay, flying Q200s EWR-IAD is a Smisek-era decision, but that's one route. Domestic refleeting has been in work for many years and is taking a new, accelerated direction with the current leadership.

Continuing to pretend that a sell side analyst influences a companies policy is down right detrimental to credibility on other related subjects.

DetroitFlyer

The quotes are accurate. It was part of a town hall is what I'm hearing, and are direct quotes from the video that was referenced by Skift.

mherdeg

OK but it's not entirely a train to nowhere -- it's a train from the United mainline gates (not the greatest) to the LH and TK lounges. It's magical

adambrau

Nice comments from Oscar. I saw him interviews by Richard Quest on CNN yesterday and while the topic was regarding ME3 he really is a breath of fresh air v Smisek. I stayed with United during the years of Int'l drawdown at JFK, so for many years I would fly JFK/EWR/LGA - IAD - Europe. Was a total PITA but my strategy was to keep building up my lifetime BIS. The merger w/ Continental was a relief personally from avoiding those small Barbie jets between NYC and IAD. I haven't really been to Dulles in a while. But bigger planes and keeping IAD (and also building up LAX) as hubs in the system is ultimately god for all of us.

Adam

fly18725

Perhaps I should have said the context in which the quotes are used in this dicussion and the conclusions drawn from the quotes are incorrect.

The actual quotes from Oscar in the article are sensible and relevant, though not particularly insightful.

sinoflyer

Kudos to Oscar for such frank talk. It's the mark of a respectable leader, and I hold hopes that he will deliver.

It's not revisionist history that UA post-2012 indeed engaged in ceding domestic markets that didn't fit into the grander vision of "global network." EWR-IAD was just one example of such "strategy." Putting Q400 on DEN-MCI and ceding a large chunk of that market to WN was another. So was the paring down of LAX capacity to a skeleton of its former self.

I'm seeing much more significance in Munoz's comments. They signal a drastic departure from, not a continuation of, the previous regime.