Airline Empires » Whiskey Tango Foxtrot? http://www.airlineempires.net/blog The Captain Has Turned Off the Seatbelt Sign Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:59:57 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Fully Functional Miniature Airport will Blow Your Mind http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2011/09/fully-functional-miniature-airport-will-blow-your-mind/ http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2011/09/fully-functional-miniature-airport-will-blow-your-mind/#comments Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:50:42 +0000 miller22 http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/?p=433 Click here to view the embedded video.

I was impressed by the detail, and then the lights, and then that the aircraft moved on the taxiway center-lines…but then…well I’ll let you see for yourself.  The real magic starts around 1:00.

So, it’s settled.  I must take a trip to Hamburg to see this beautiful thing.

Check them out at http://www.miniatur-wunderland.de/

]]> http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2011/09/fully-functional-miniature-airport-will-blow-your-mind/feed/ 1 Faith in Ornstein http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2010/02/faith-in-ornstein/ http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2010/02/faith-in-ornstein/#comments Thu, 18 Feb 2010 02:57:12 +0000 miller22 http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/?p=339 With Mesa Airlines in bankruptcy protection, there are numerous documents that are filed to the judge daily.  What I didn’t realize is that every document that is submitted to the court is made publicly available.  Why should this surprise me?  Because a very interesting docket was passed along to me which proves that almost everything that gets sent to the judge ends up on a public website.

Download the docket pdf HERE.

So, just what does the docket say?  It’s a hand-written note, and it certainly doesn’t express much faith in Ornstein:

Dear Judge Glenn:

I can speak for almost all of us Mesa Airlines, that our CEO (J. Ornstein) has brought this airline down.
He cheats of out of pay and treats us badly.  He should be forced out.  All he cares about is himself.  He
is a scammer.  If he can’t be forced out, his pay should be greatly reduced.  It isn’t the economy that put us
in this situation.  He has made blunder-after-blunder the last few years!  He was involved in a stock-trading scam
in his past.  Please, please, take this letter into account in your decisions.  He’s a bad person!

Thank you,
The Concerned

But don’t just take my word for it.  If you search through Mesa’s Chapter 11 filing site at http://www.epiq11.com/, you will find the original docket.  Just click the “All Active Cases” link, and find Mesa Airlines.  Look through the docket link and find docket number 325.

]]> http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2010/02/faith-in-ornstein/feed/ 8 MIT Never Ceases to Amaze – Autonomous VTOL http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/12/mit-never-ceases-to-amaze-autonomous-vtol/ http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/12/mit-never-ceases-to-amaze-autonomous-vtol/#comments Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:12:19 +0000 admin http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/?p=272 Now this is cool.  A completely autonomous Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) RC Aircraft is demonstrated at MIT.  The aircraft takes-off vertically, flies a couple laps around the room, then returns to vertical flight and lands.

Click here to view the embedded video.

]]> http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/12/mit-never-ceases-to-amaze-autonomous-vtol/feed/ 11 Frontier Raises Checked Baggage fee to $100 for… Antlers? http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/05/frontier-raises-checked-baggage-fee-to-100-for-antlers/ http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/05/frontier-raises-checked-baggage-fee-to-100-for-antlers/#comments Mon, 26 May 2008 11:12:27 +0000 admin http://www.airlineempires.net/blog/2008/05/26/frontier-raises-checked-baggage-fee-to-100-for-antlers/ Frontier Airlines

Frontier Airlines announced this week that they will be increasing the fee for checking antlers. Antlers. Gone are the days of moving your prized trophies for a measly $75. Now, if you want to bring your antlers back home with you, it’s going to cost you a full $100.

This news has triggered a full “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” for me. Not a “What were they thinking” type of moment, but a “Where have I been” moment. I consider myself relatively well connected with the industry, and I’ve never heard of airlines even allowing antlers in checked baggage. I suppose it does make sense, considering Frontier’s hub is considered a sort of a Mecca for hunters.

But the genius (or dumb luck) in this is that Frontier was able to boost their brand recognition, all while dealing out bad news. If anyone is going to mention fees for antlers, you’d expect it to be Frontier. That “Whole Different Animal” slogan makes sense now, doesn’t it. Great for strengthening their brand. The other stroke of genius (again, or dumb luck) is that Frontier doled out a whole laundry list of extra fees, none of which created much buzz. In additional to the 33% hike in antler-handling fees, came a 25% increase in fees for unaccompanied minors to $50, a $25 charge for a second checked bag, a termination of the half-priced infant seat policy, and an end to booking pets in the cabin.

With all of this bad news, what did the public focus on?  The same thing I did:  “Frontier carries antlers?”  If I’m a hunter, and I wanted to ensure protection of my prize from my hunting trip, the extra $25 is nothing, and Frontier just raised to the top of my list of airlines since I know they can take them.  Kudos to the Frontier PR team for turning bad news into free advertising (whether they meant to or not).

Now, how much do you think they charge extra to haul these antlers around?

Frontier A319

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