If you had the power and funds at this very moment to create your own airline, what would its structure be? Aircraft, routes, hubs, name?
NO hubs
Serve outlaying airports
Use aircraft such as the DHC-8-400 and smaller jets for flights under about 400-500 miles, larger regional/smaller “mainline” jets (e.g. CRJ-900 and 737-600) for flights longer than that unless capacity is needed.
Seat pitch of 32-33 inches.
Name: “I’m David - Fly Me” just kidding. Probably something along the lines of Western Airlines, assuming I could get the rights to the name from Delta.
Pay my employees well enough and treat them good enough so that they will not want to join a union. Through higher, non-union productivity I could offer lower fares but not necessarily rock-bottom fares. I’m in this to make money, not lose it.
The airports served would be the hardest to do due to the idiotic NIMBY’s (not in my back yard). I would like to serve airports in metropolitan areas that serve cities that are close to major airports in distance only. Timewise they can be as much as an hour way. A good example is the SF Bay Area. My airport of choice would be LVK (ariport codes used here are shown below). The Tri-Valley area is growing and has a perfectly good airport that is within 20-30 minutes of the area. OAK, the nearest major airport, can is only a few miles away as the crow flies but it can take over an hour to get to it.
A few routes I feel would do go area:
LVK/LAX (DHC8)
LVK/ONT (DHC8)
BFI/LAX (jet)
I think with good marketing people would accept the turboprops.
*Airport codes used:
LVK: Livermore
LAX: Los Angeles
ONT: Ontario
BFI: Seattle Boeing Field
*
Aircraft:Dash-8-400 ERJ-170, ERJ-190
Hub:Ft.Lauderdale
Routes:
FLL/Naples(Dash8)
FLL/Key West(Dash8)
FLL/Miami(Dash8)
FLL/Orlando(ERJ-170)
FLL/Tampa(ERJ-170)
FLL/Jacksonille(ERJ-170)
FLL/Tallahassee(ERJ-170)
FLL/San Juan(ERJ-190)
FLL/ST.Maarten(ERJ-190)
FLL/Nassau(ERJ-190)
Name:Florida Express
I don’t know the routes but here goes :
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$ 500 minimum fare. too expensive ? Then go to southwest. Airlines would be so much better off if they would charge more.
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Only one fleet type. 757 would be nice but their not going to be in production.
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Fat people…oops sorry. “Obese americans” pay extra. Your butt cannot squirm onto the seat of the person sitting next to you. NO EXCEPTIONS !!
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No swanky name like “allegro” or “primarus”. If it sounds like an italian sexual enhancement drug it can’t be an airlines name. “Hooters” is also not acceptable.
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No 30 minute turns between flights, that’s just not enough time to get the airplane cleaned properly for the next passengers. I’ll never be profitable with an attitude like that.
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Screaming babies…come on. I mean really. Charge extra for that. No exceptions.
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If you previously held a position in management at an airline that was in bankruptcy for more than a decade you may not hold a position in management at my airline, You were probably why the airline sucked so very badly !
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Pilots who have more than four ex-wives need not apply. Learning to not make the same mistake four times is part of being a grown-up.
That’s all I can think of right now.
People think I have issues! A pilot’s domestic life does not reflect his professional life.
Are you saying ALL levels of management?
A 30 minute turn is more than enough time for domestic flights. You got an airplane sitting on the ground you have an expensive paperweight. It’s not making any money on the ground.
The other airlines should take lessons from the only airline to be profitable each year over the last 30+ years!
Nicely put Dami!!!
I would use tilt rotor aircraft and fly to privately owned STOL ports near city centers.
I would offer ground transportation and parking as part of the package.
Our customers and their luggage would get to where they were going as quickly and as safely as possible with no excuses. Even if the airline president had to drive them in his own car. We would be as safe, consistent, and fun as SWA (only a bit more exclusive, see below). Our seats will be roomier, too.
Customers who misbehave will be blacklisted. We reserve the right to turn away anyone on the basis of their annoying behavior.
Ahh, its fun to dream.
PS, Pilots who have more than 1 wife at any given time will be excluded. Otherwise, if it happens at home, WE DON’T CARE.
How do you make a billion dollars in the airline industry? Start with $10 billion . . .
Anyone got 9.995 Billion on 'em?
I’m a li’l short, but we can use my mooney to get started 8)
If i could i would make an airline based in BNA called Music City Air with lots of domestic longhauls and some regionals. And then expand globally once the 73gs come out and 787s.
bna-sea 73g
bna-sfo 752
bna-lax 752
bna-san 73g
bna-las 752
bna-phx 73g
bna-den 73g
bna-ege (seasonal) e190
bna-dfw 752
bna-iah 73g
bna-ord e190
bna-fll 752
bna-mia e190
bna-mco 752
bna-tpa e190
bna-jfk e190
bna-lga 73g
bna-dca e190
bna-bos e190
bna-cun 752
bna-yyz e190
bna-lgw 787
bna-cdg 73g
bna-fra 73g
bna-nrt 787
bna-nas (seasonal) 73g
First of all, I have to give props to dami on a great post at the start of this thread. It’s refreshing to see a post that doesn’t correct technicalities when everyone knows what the person is talking about.
Seems like everyone has a local twist to their ideas, so here’s mine:
DFW population is really skyrocketing, especially north of Dallas along the I-75 corridor. Frisco is one of the fastest growing cities in Texas. DAL is close to downtown Dallas and is a good 45 minute to 1 hr drive from the suburbs. DFW is between Dallas and Fort Worth and can be a 1.5 hr drive depending on traffic, especially if coming from McKinney. Both DFW and DAL are mainly accessible from north Dallas by toll roads now so frequent travellers could rack up hundreds of dollars in tolls getting to these airports. I would start an airline out of the McKinney airport (TKI) that would serve the booming population of north Dallas - it is a very wealthy market base. I would probably follow SWA’s pre-Wright Amendment route structure with mostly local routes: HOU, IAH, AUS, SAT, OKC, LBB, CRP, and probably SHV to support the gambling crowd. I’d have to do some market research to see what aircraft would best serve the demand, but I’d be inclined to start with Dash 8’s.
Sounds like someone has four or more divorces ! oops.
My airline? One that caters to the pilot. Since he does all the work. 8)
We’ll see how long that lasts. And who said women can’t be pilots? 
Must…resist…correction…Can’t…hold…on…much…longer…
Ah hell…
Actually, it is US-75…
Sorry, I held off as long as I could. 
TheButterflyLands isn’t saying, in my humble opinion, he would only hire male pilots. He is using “he” in the sense of a person of unknown gender (i.e. either male or female).
In days past, it was common to use “he” for a person in general. There wasn’t the awkwardness about saying “he/she” or using a plural pronoun in place of the singular (e.g. “the person went to their reunion”). Worse yet is the use of “it” for a person (e.g. the baby wet it’s diaper).
I mean come on, after all, we are known as MAN kind…
So you’re defending improper grammar usage? 
No. It is proper grammar, albeit not in common usage in today’s politically correct world.
I’m pretty sure it violates the gender agreement rule, but I’d welcome any evidence to the contrary.