I’ve done several off-blog items on the subject of international airline alliances lately. Here they are:
- The Airplane Geeks podcast with Max and Court
- A guest post on the Cranky Flier
- An IAG podcast with Addison Schonland
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International airline alliances in the spotlight
April 13, 2009 by Evan Sparks
One Response
http://transportation.nationaljournal.com/2009/04/should-airline-oversight-be-ti.php?rss=1
Crandall has some good insights as usual.
Perhaps, my biggest take-away from Crandall’s position on ATI, Alliances and Foreign Ownership is that Foreign corporations have no interest in competing in our markets or in the proper development of our nation’s aviation infrastructure.
Crandall says that foreign operators are only interested in our largest populaton centers for the purposes of feeding THEIR international route networks.
Moving towards a situation where America’s aviation infrastructure becomes reliant on the profit/loss decisions of foreign operators is ludicrious if we are looking to use aviation as a lubricant of commerce and development.
Today’s executives don’t care about the future needs of America. They are in it for a short term payoff.
This is where it’s absolutely crucial for Public Policy Makers to step up to plate and offer forward looking vision.
I’d like to leave the public policy makers who read this with Crandall’s closing comment to YOU, during his June 10th Wings Club Speech.
THE UNITED STATES USED TO BE GOOD AT SOLVING PROBLEMS. THESE DAYS, WE DON’T SEEM UP TO THE JOB. I FIND THAT DISCOURAGING, AS I KNOW MANY OF YOU MUST. I DO HOPE, HOWEVER, THAT WHETHER YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE WITH THE THOUGHTS I HAVE PRESENTED TODAY, YOU WILL BECOME AN ADVOCATE OF SUBSTANTIVE DEBATE ABOUT FINDING SOLUTIONS FOR OUR COMMERCIAL AIRLINE INDUSTRY.
These problems are not something you can leave to the “free market” which destroyed the financial industry. Doing your job requires you to offer precisely the kind of leadership that Oberstar is providing.
That Crandall agrees with Oberstar should give many of you great confidence in supporting his position.
Occam’s Razor