AAflyer

Pure and simple outsourcing! Heck even the manufacturer of the jet knows what it is. Spare me the self branding BS.



<b>http://www.bombardier.com/files/en/supporting_docs/BCA_2009_Market_Forecast.pdf</b>




While the rate of
capacity reductions is expected
to slow, US mainline carriers will
continue to remove older aircraft
from their fleets. Scope clauses
will be challenged as mainline
carriers continue to look for more
optimization opportunities through
regional carrier outsourcing.



An important component of
mainline carrier crew labour
agreements are scope clauses.
These negotiated clauses define
restrictions on the type, number
and size of aircraft that may be
flown by regional airline partners.
Scope clauses are found in both
the US and Europe, but are most
restrictive in the US. Historically,
scope clauses have been a
barrier to outsourcing. However,
scope clauses are considerably
less restrictive than they were
historically, and are permitting
regional carriers to fly more
and larger regional aircraft.

It is
predicted that over the next 20
years, scopes clauses will evolve,
permitting 100-seat aircraft to be
flown by regional carriers, and
play a central role in reshaping the
makeup of the industry.

The mix of the deliveries, 5,800
turboprops and jets in total, will
be strongly influenced by mainline
carrier scope clauses as they
evolve to permit improved network
capacity optimization. On a cost
basis, regional airlines operating
large regional aircraft have proven
to be very competitive even
compared to LFCs flying larger
narrow body aircraft.

(LFC = Low Fare Carrier = Southwest)

Dougdrvr

Shall we start a pool?

mwa1

I agree this will be the turning point. Labor has already played into Mgmt's hands by their charging regional pilots with the blame for a race to the bottom and "I've got mine attitude." How any legacy pilot can fathom that any loyalty exists with regional pilots after the buttwhipping that they got here and elsewhere is beyond me. First it was the Military/Civilian debates and "nepotism" of getting my guard buddy in. Then it was the shrill shrieks of "you're taking my flying," and finally you lowered the bar so that I cannot have mine at my carrier either.
All of these sound good to the accuser but they will not abide the coming economic storm. We had our bailout after 9/11 ($5B) and it still resulted in BK and mergers. That just postponed the inevitable. Mark my words, you ain't seen nothing yet. The pressure put on airlines to have a similar cost structure has just been ratcheted up by a factor of 3. 10 years and you won't recognize the place.

Dougdrvr

I don't recognize it NOW.

3XLoser

How did a thread about a 138 seat airplane ordered by a 2.5 billion dollar per year company get moved from the majors to the regionals? Every one of us needs to make sure these airplanes are never called RJs. The moderators here could help with that too. As someone already mentioned, Frontier already has decent payrates for these, and Midwest did too, if any part of our contract can be resurrected from the trash bin.

mwa1

If F9 doesn't get SLI they will be YX in the near future- Loenzo's legacy, repeated.

mwa1

Good find AAF,
just want to point out that all contracts regardless of industry have a "scope of the agreement" section. sometimes I think that many interpret "scope" as something peculiar to seat numbers.

Dougdrvr

That's a GREAT idea? Let's bury the word "regional" like they did that racial epithet, a while back. From now on the world will consist of 121 or 135 carriers! (Oh, and let's all wear our "monster" shirts to school on Friday)

DashDriverYV

It sounds like the only good job in the Airlines over the next few decades will be in upper management.

dojetdriver

Sorry Acl, are you saying that the major doesn't want the cost associated with moving the "RJ" to the mainline fleet?

Just trying to clarify what you're saying above.