DCA Expanding?!?

[kellwolf]

Saw this in AVflash today:

[ QUOTE ]
It seems counterintuitive that while Delta Air Lines is cutting 7,000 jobs and Alaska Air says 900 jobs will disappear, Delta's flight-school subsidiary is expanding and the airline is worried that a looming pilot shortage may cause flight cancellations --

[/ QUOTE ]

What? Did they hire Kit Darby to do their marketting now? Most of the guys I know that came out of DCA in SFB said it was a money making scheme to the nth degree. The few that DID get through the CFI class were offered a low ball job somewhere in Maryland as CFIs. They paid all that money to live in an area notorious for high cost of living on CFI wage and get (this was the best part) approx. 60 hours of flying every TWO months. Now, I really don't think a "pilot shortage" is the reason for building this:

[ QUOTE ]
Delta Connection Academy opens a new branch in Dayton, Ohio, this month, ready to train new pilots for regional jets, which are growing in number even as the "legacy" carriers like Delta struggle to avoid bankruptcy.

[/ QUOTE ]

Um, so is it DCA or is it Delta's training? Looks to me like they're flying the glossy "You can fly an RJ!" recruiting ad. Doug, is Delta opening an RJ training base in Dayton? Seems like a huge waste of money since Delta mainline no fly RJ, and Comair/ASA already have good training bases.

[ QUOTE ]
Delta also faces disruption from a possible crew shortage, as pilots worried about the airline's future take advantage of a pension plan that allows them to retire early with big lump-sum payouts.

[/ QUOTE ]

And finally, what in the world do Delta pilots doing the smart thing and retiring early have to do with RJs? Yeah, there will be SOME upward mobility at the regional level, or Delta might just hire some of the US Air guys with larger 121 experience that decide to get off that sinking ship.

[Doug Taylor]

There's no looming pilot shortage.

Not to play "Union Talking Head" but there was an agreement made to alleviate the effects on the schedule of early retirements and there is an agreement in place.

Our beloved CEO wants a broader agreement and told a reporter that if we're not able to 'see it his way', the resulting scheduling difficulties unless we agree to his flavor of schedule relief for the early retirements could devastate the schedule and the airline.

DCA's spinning this for their own benefit with a twist of Kit Darby-esque verbiage.

Welcome to "Negotiating In The Media 101".

We had a crapload of pilots retire a few months ago and there has been one flight cancellation due to lack of available crews.

[kellwolf]

[ QUOTE ]
DCA's spinning this for their own benefit with a twist of Kit Darby-esque verbiage.

[/ QUOTE ]

That's what I figured. Sad thing is, Joe Wannabe Flyer sees "owned by Delta" and automatically assumes he's gonna be in an RJ in 6 months. Then he b*tches and moans about how the industry sucks, blah blah blah. I just think this kinda advertising is the lowest of the low. Seeing in AVFlash ranked right up there with AOPA Pilot pretty much calling Gulfstream a "best buy."

[Doug Taylor]

Whoops, the quote is supposed to be, and I quote: "We have worked closely with management to implement this letter of agreement and have been successful in ensuring that Delta continues to operate all flights with no disruptions. In 2004, not one flight has been cancelled due to "pilot early retirements."

Primarily the reason why I carry around a baseball bat for when I run across some of the media-types.

[ QUOTE ]
Delta Connection Academy opens a new branch in Dayton, Ohio, this month, ready to train new pilots for regional jets, which are growing in number even as the "legacy" carriers like Delta struggle to avoid bankruptcy.

[/ QUOTE ]

Not sure on the whole story with this, but I know that they bgan a partnership with Sinclair Community College, who had an already existing aviation program. I'll see what I can dig up as far as the depth of the "relationship".

All this Darby style marketing is getting pretty frusterating though.

[tonyw]

When I saw this, I thought, they're expanding National Airport? Why?

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[flyover]

[ QUOTE ]
It seems counterintuitive that while Delta Air Lines is cutting 7,000 jobs and Alaska Air says 900 jobs will disappear, Delta's flight-school subsidiary is expanding and the airline is worried that a looming pilot shortage may cause flight cancellations --

[/ QUOTE ]

It is counterintuitive, total BS, in that one has nothing to do with the other. There was a time (late 80s to early 90s) when Delta flight operations people were quite concerned about the future pilot supply. Senior flight ops people were exploring the need to train pilots from the ground up, ala Europe or Asia. This was mainly because they only understood pilot supplies from a military perspective. If the military was extending committments and training fewer pilots (oh my god!), then where are we going to get future pilots?!!!!

Of course "the market place" took care of that and DCA is a purely money-making enterprise (so buyer beware). I mean who would have thought a few years ago that Delta would have a corporate jet subsidary? It's making some bucks too.

[BoilerPilot2007]

[ QUOTE ]
When I saw this, I thought, they're expanding National Airport? Why?

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah... I thought the same thing.. I was hoping for a runway extension over the marina on the south side... maybe we could start getting 777's in on the river visual [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[Doug Taylor]

Heaven help us all then!

Nothing like that lonely feeling when you do the LDA/DME to 19 and you don't see anything at MDA! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

[DE727UPS]

DCA's advertising has always been a joke. It's the main reason I talk down the school to everyone who asks me about it. No reason why their press releases should be any different.

[H46Bubba]

Oh my! A DCA thread in the General Topics! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif[/img] So was this put out by DCA or was it an article? It is true that we have a new satellite campus in Dayton with Sinclair. It will be the same and equal as BCC, JAX University, and Bridgewater up in Mass. I don't agree with the marketing either. As far as what the future has in store for DCA with the restructuring of Delta, depends on Comair and how flights and a/c are distributed through the DCI system.

[stultus]

[ QUOTE ]
When I saw this, I thought, they're expanding National Airport? Why?

[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[/ QUOTE ]

Almost the same thought here except I was thinking--they're expanding Reagan National? Where?