RESPONDED ON NOVEMBER 30, 200912:47 PM 

### Ron Kuhlmann, Aviation Analyst and Writer, Sharp Aviation Teams, Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA) 'J

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There are no easy answers. Much ofthe industry carries a "legacy" designator andthat indicates that there is a lot ofhistory and definition inherent in the structures ofthose companies. As we have seen in otherindustries, overcoming thatheritage can be a mighty task. And it is made more complex by the fact that US carriers, for a considerable time, were global leaders. Like nations, it's hardto move down in the pecking order. But there are some steps that might move the US industry in a more positive direction.
Rememberthat you are a service industry. Ifrequently have more positive encounters with supermarket cashiers than with airline staff. All to often the "we are delighted to have you onboardtoday" announcement is the sum total ofgoodwill that will be dispensed. I realize thatthe knocks taken by staffhave put many ofthem out of sorts, buttheylose track ofthe fact thatthe individual passenger is notto blame for that situation and should notbe held accountable. Aquick read through many online flight reviews reveals a stunning number ofreferences to staffattitude.
There is more to the problem thanATC. Ifby some miracle the next-gen systems were available tomorrow, there would still be only two runways at LaGuardia andthe runways in San Francisco would still be only 750 feet apart. I recently did an assessment ofthe 5-6pm departures atAtlanta and found that the number ofoperations was a bit below the optimal capacity in good weather. Add a storm or fog, however, andyou have
an unsustainable operational schedule at an airport that has actually added runway capacity. So where does thatleave Newark?
Hello Labor? Hello Management? Much ofthe time it is virtually impossible to believe thatthese two groups actually are involved in the same enterprise. There are continuous actions byboth that seem primarily intended to exacerbate the wounds rather than heal them. There are boundto be points offriction due to the different perspectives and responsibilities ofeach partybut even at Ryanair, pilots are not trashing their own company in order to dig at management. Eastern showed decades ago that intractability can, indeed, bring the company down. And then?
"The industry" is not synonymous with its parts. In the US we continue to assume that aviation is really a certain set ofbrand names and to allow one ofthosenames to fail is equivalent to total industry decline. PanAm, certainly one ofthe first global brands, disappeared and, strangely, people still got to London. Eastern's demise did not result in Miami becoming a backwater. The elaborate "safety net" ofbankruptcy protections has generally served to only extend the lives ofcompanies that eventually prove to be unsustainable. However, in the meantime, as is regularly pointed outby international competitors, the regulations allow the weakest links to establish pricing baselines that have far fewer ormuch-reduced cost components. Getting to Phoenix does not inherently require a 50 year-old airline. Forget national, thinkglobal. Some have described the airlines as the original world-wide web andlong before we spoke ofa global village, the world's airlines were connecting it. Yet despite this incredible reach, US airlines especially, remain very domestic companies that simply go a lot ofplaces. The ownership regulations were fine decades ago butthey serve no real purpose in the present environment. I take thatback-- they offer a way for incumbent carriers to file seemingly endless lawsuits concerning the ownership ofVirgin America. And this is beneficialjusthow? While this narrowview of the world is not exclusive to the US, we continue to fear foreign involvement far more than most. Even the Japanese are seemingly more open to foreign involvement-which points outthatthe US does not object to being the owner,justthe ownee. Forreasons that are unclear, airlines occupy a unique sliver ofthe national and corporate psyche. Banks, energy companies, automakers and other high-profile corporate names merge ordisappear on a regular basis andthe nation goes on about its business, butthe possible disappearance of AmericanAirlines or United hints at national Armageddon. As we are seeing in the battle for JapanAir Lines, investors are willing to supplybillions in support ofUS carriers that are themselves in poor financial shape in order to getJAL into their alliance!!! As long as that kind ofreality disconnect exists, no commission will be able to "fix" things.