We dashed off a quick tweet about this hot topic last night, which I thought conveyed my sentiments regarding this hoopla surrounding a potential "deal" for AMR, parent of American Airlines. I made the point that I questioned any "offer" that was addressed to one "Gerald" Arpey. Not "Gerard" Arpey.

In a nutshell -- I was implying that you should go back to whatever you were doing before you got sidetracked with news of this nonsense. Read More »

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Rajat Gupta, former head of McKinsey and Co., and former Goldman Sachs board member, with insider trading. The charges were filed in a civil administrative proceeding filed by the SEC's Division of Enforcement.

What does this have to do with airlines? Gupta is a member of the AMR Board of Directors. AMR is the parent of American Airlines.

After the news broke today, Gupta voluntarily resigned from the Proctor and Gamble BOD.

Read More »

New York Harbor Jet picked up another 13 cents in trading today. Closed at $3.22/gallon.

Last week Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly said the airline would not reassess its capacity plans unless fuel hit $3.30 a gallon. Looks like that day could come sooner than he had anticipated. Read More »

This week we take in-depth looks at the recent earnings results posted by American Airlines, US Airways, United Airlines, Continental Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Even before the formal announcement was issued this morning, it had been clear for some time that United Airlines president John Tague was not a member of the executive transition team that was going to stay with the "new" United. That fact was also crystal clear as you listened to the airline's earnings call last week.

This morning, Read More »

Delta Air Lines reported earnings this morning, the first airline to report earnings for the second quarter. While the headline numbers for the airline's results look quite good on the surface, airline stocks began to drop after the numbers were released and they have yet to get up again. Why is this the case if Delta reported such a large profit?

Read More »

For what it's worth, we've been hit by a number of emails in the last hour concerning a possible announcement regarding a move by US Airways on United Airlines. While this would certainly be big news, for those of you who follow the industry (and hopefully by reading PlaneBusiness Banter), you shouldn't be surprised. Yee haw. I hope these rumors are spot on. I'm tired of reading emails about diaper bags and charging for carryons. Read More »

Thanks to JetBlue and American Airlines for providing us with a nice bit of April Foolery this year. Yeah, right, they are going to join in some kind of partnership, slot swap, interline agreement.

Good job guys. Oh, wait. That was yesterday.Today is April 1. Hmmmm.

So what is your take on all this news? I admit it. I was surprised at the news. I thought April Fools Day had come a day early when I first saw the headline. Read More »

This is simply too good. A 1933 "American Airways" promotional video. And I quote, "From the beginning of time, man has been the master of his own journey, he chooses the road by which he goes. He steps ahead or he steps aside. Here's the man who steps ahead. The kind of man who gets things done. He knows where he's going and how to get there -- the American Airways way." Read More »

Ho, ho, ho. Merry Christmas.

Or something like that.

Thanks to a wickedly strange website entitled Sketchy Santas for today's visual. If you have a warped sense of humor like I do, go on over and take a peek. I'll use a couple more of them here before we say goodbye to the Christmas season. I mean, after all, a little warped sense of humor is good for us all this time of year -- yes? Read More »

Wanna get Southwest to begin service to your city? Wanna write a check?

If some of you are scratching your heads over the news that Southwest Airlines is going to start service from "Northwest Florida's New International Airport near Panama City, Florida" in May 2010, all one needs to do is take a look at the fine print in an SEC filing from the St. Joe Company -- a major land developer in the Florida panhandle. Read More »