Delta to file bankruptcy

[Gerhardt]

I was returning from vacation with my family last month on Delta. We were next in line to check our luggage and there was only one person working the counter but the guy in front of us was upset that his frequent flier miles weren't adding up correctly. After an excruciatingly long time I interrupted and asked if they could do that another time. The woman at the counter was incredibly rude and said I'd have to wait until they were done.

When they finally gave up and it was our turn we stepped forward with our luggage only to be told "we just stopped checking in for this flight a minute ago." And we had to book the next flight and pay $100 processing fee. Since I was actually in line in plenty of time I asked for the fee to be waived but this wasn't to be. It was obvious they didn't give a damn.

I woke up to read the bankruptcy headline this morning and couldn't help but smile just a little. I'd like to feel sorry for the airline and its employees...but my give a damn's busted.

I do feel sorry for some of the folks. We had TERRIFIC friendly pilots and flight attendants. Some of the nicest people I've met so it's strange that one bad apple can skew a customer's perspective that much. But it does.

[PAXboy]

... investors feared that the airline might declare bankruptcy as soon as this week. from BBC 12th Sept (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4239486.stm)

Something has to give and Chapter 11 allows (encourages) these prolonged deaths. If one of the big ones did close, it would help the rest of the biz. Not nice but that's the way it looks. Of course, using the term 'big ones' is not really accurate for a carrier that is reported in the linked article as having $14billion of debt and plummeting pax numbers. Not nice but this is how the western world has chosen to live.

[TheOddOne]

I'm told that the combined losses of United States carriers last year was in excess of ALL the money EVER made by the WHOLE industry since the beginning of civil aviation. WOW!!! Which banks can possibly have given them all that money? It must be billions and billions of dollars! They can't possibly be expecting to see any of it back, can they? What's the point in allowing these businesses to keep going? Basically it just seems to be giving those people who do travel with these outfits hugely subsidised rides. It might almost be cheaper not to charge at all and at least save on the cost of selling seats...

The Odd One