The Real History of AirTran

[trs717]

AirTran Holdings, a progression of the legacy ValuJet Airline, has
had an interesting turn-around history. Airline veterans, Robert
Priddy, Maurice Gallagher, and Timothy Flynn, founded ValuJet
in 1992, basing it in Atlanta. By year-end, the company operated
six aircraft on 34 daily flights to Fort Lauderdale, Jacksonville,
Orlando, and Tampa, Florida. By late 1994, it flew 22 jets between
16 cities, mainly in the Southeast. ValuJet continued to expand,
linking Washington, DC to Chicago and Montreal in 1995 and to
New York in 1996.
In May 1996 a ValuJet DC-9 crashed in the Florida Everglades.
The FAA reviewed the company's
safety and maintenance procedures after the crash, forcing the
airline to shut down for 15 weeks. ValuJet resumed flights in
September, offering $19 one-way flights to lure back passengers.
Turnaround specialist Joseph Corr, formerly of TWA and
Continental Airlines, came aboard in November as CEO to help
ValuJet change its course.
To recover passenger bookings, the airline joined the SABRE
computer reservation system in 1997, sparking a 60% increase in
SABRE bookings. That year ValuJet acquired Florida based Air Tran (with space between two words,) rebranded itself as AirTran Airways, kicked off an advertising campaign to overhaul
its image, and moved to Orlando. In 1999 Joseph Leonard, a
former Eastern Airlines executive, succeeded Corr as CEO. That
year AirTran began to replace aging aircraft by taking delivery of
new Boeing 717 jets, becoming the first airline to use that
new aircraft model.
An industry-wide move to merge operations followed United
Airline's announcement to buy US Airways in 2000 -- and AirTran
was no exception. It began to circle failing giant TWA, but talks
between the two airlines ended shortly after they began. Also,
during 2000, AirTran transferred to the New York Stock Exchange
from the NASDAQ.
In 2001, AirTran retired the last of its Boeing 737-200s as it continued
to update its fleet with Boeing 717 jets.
In 2002 Entrepreneur Magazine's Issues AirTran its "Best Low-Fare Airline for 2002 Award."
Same is awarded in 2003.
In early 2004 AirTran retired it's last DC9, making it's fleet the youngest all Boeing fleet in the world with average aircraft age of less than 3 years.
In June 2004 AirTran took delivery of it's first of 100 ordered Boeing 737-700 which will more than double airline's size and allow AirTran to operate non-stop between any point in the United States, Caribbean and South America.
Today AirTran is a remarkable success story. It is one of America's largest low-fare airlines, offers quality jet service with over 500 daily flights to 45 destinations. The airline features a Business Class, easy online booking and check-in, advanced seat assignments and full participation in travel agents' computer reservation systems without roundtrip or stay restrictions. As the second largest carrier at the world's busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, AirTran Airways is the world's largest operator of the Boeing 717, the most modern, environmentally friendly commercial aircraft in its class. AirTran Airways will soon begin offering XM Satellite Radio onboard all flights with more than 100 digital channels with fleet wide installation complete by the end of 2004.
For more information go to http://www.airtran.com/

Here is an great quote from one of members (Haze) of this forum:
"The creator, webmaster, and administrators of this website are all from Austin, TX and have a strong bias toward Continental and Southwest. The main reason for their deep hatred of AirTran, and all the subsequent propaganda, is because AirTran is such a wonderful juggernaut of a product that they feel threatens their hometeam Southwest (not to mention legacy carriers like Continental). Just watch the movie "Tucker" and you'll understand their motivation. Whenever the status quo of the "entrenched" gets turned on it's side by a new kid on the block doings things more efficiently and more affordably, there is a panic. That panic is the AirTran portion of this website

That's why myself (a frequent AirTran customer), two AirTran mechanics, an AirTran pilot, and a Delta pilot came here: to set the record straight from the inside out and to counterbalance the propaganda with the truth. dbaker, the creator of this site and author of all the libel contained herein, is nothing more than a consultant from Texas with a penchant for Continental and Southwest who gets his information from reading magazines, websites, and government reports. We who defend AirTran, however, actually buy the tickets and fly the routes and cast the proxy votes and maintain the aircraft and pilot the planes and fly other airlines' planes out of the same airports and have hands-on knowledge of AirTran. "
well said Haze!

[sherlok54]

I flew Air Tran for the first time on December 7th and 13th from Philadelphia to Orlando and back. I normally fly Spirit; however, the $49 (each way) fares were too good to pass up. Both flights were Boeing 717's. On the 7th there was a 90 minute delay leaving Philadelphia with a good flight to follow. However the real fun began on Flight 784 on the 13th.

The plane departed on-time however, ten minutes or so into the flight the Captain announced that a tire had burst and that we would be doing a low fly-over for the tower to inspect the bottom of the plane, and then returning to Orlando for a landing. The Captain then told us that the some rubber had been located on the runway we had departed from.

We returned to Orlando and were bused in from the runway as "they" did not feel safe towing us in. Prior to boarding the bus we were greeted by emergency crews and other "authorities." During the trip I overheard some crewmembers stating that plane had also lost its hydraulics. When we arrived at the terminal, the "supervisor" announced that we would all receive McDonalds food vouchers for our inconvenience and that another plane would arrive in a approximately 90 minutes.

At first, I wigged out as I would have at least expected a decent meal; however, then we were told that each passenger would receive a free round-trip ticket to any of Air Tran’s destinations for use within the next twelve months.

The moral of the story is that while my family of five was inconvenienced for a few hours and only offered cheeseburgers from disgruntled fast-food workers who were forced to work overtime; I now feel safe knowing that the Air Tran Captain took the necessary safety precautions, and the company compensated me by providing the tickets and paying for a car service from Philadelphia to Toms River, NJ as my original ride was no longer available.

I will be even happier when I take my family to the Bahamas next year courtesy of Air Tran. Mechanical malfunctions can happen to any airline. Most come from the same manufacturer with different carrier’s logos affixed to the sides. Yet it is good to know that Air Tran takes care of its customers.

[NiGHTS]

dbaker, the creator of this site and author of all the libel contained herein, is nothing more than a consultant from Texas with a penchant for Continental and Southwest who gets his information from reading magazines, websites, and government reports. We who defend AirTran, however, actually buy the tickets and fly the routes and cast the proxy votes and maintain the aircraft and pilot the planes and fly other airlines' planes out of the same airports and have hands-on knowledge of AirTran. "

I think the reason why dbaker does not like AirTran is because they have a history of being unsafe. He has never mentioned Continental or Southwest in any of his posts on the AirTran board. He has however given a large amount of thought provoking information. While he is reading from government reports, they are the accepted authority on the subject of airline safety. AirTran employees, shareholders and customers can only speak from their experiences and from their work. While these opinions from customers and views from the inside do play a role in making a viewpoint on AirTran as a company, they do not persuade anyone in believing it is a safe airline to fly.

Shades of Valujet are still apparent in AirTran, even looking at the threads being posted on this board. Many of the posts on this board are about the rapid expansion and growth of AirTran, much like Valujet was in 1996. A better parallel is how most of the AirTran supporters on this board push the blame onto others when events do occur. http://www.ityt.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=2127 This does not support your case in making believe that AirTran is a safe airline to fly. This makes me even more suspicious of their practices.

What gets me the most is that the majority of the AirTran supporters on this board can't carry themselves with any sort of decency or respectability. Two threads on this board are devoted to bashing dbaker. There have been people questioning dbaker about his family and if they were on 592. You question his loyalties even though he hasn't shown any on any of the AirTran threads. The majority (but not all of you) act like complete idiots on this board. Why would I, or anyone, want to board a plane after seeing how the maintainence crew behaves on here? I understand that it's a matter of pride. Saying AirTran is unsafe reflects on the crew on the ground. That being said, you represent your company on here. Hopefully AirTran as a company isn't as bad how many of you behave on here.

dbaker did not have to let all of you make asses of yourselves, he could have banned you from the start and prevented any discussion from the pro-AirTran side from appearing. I appreciate that ITYT allows for this sort of discussion to occur freely without moderation, even though half of the arguments are asinine.

Although I can't fly on AirTran from where I am, if they did offer flights I would not fly with them for any reason. I made this decision myself after seeing what all of you have had to say and by reading reports. I was more inclined to agree with dbaker as he acts professional, like he is the end all say all on the subject. While we all know he isn't the case, at least he carries himself with dignity and respects everyone who contributes to this board, even if they don't respect him. It's really too bad that as much as i'd like to, I really can't say that about the pro-AirTran crew.

[717driver]

night, I am A Captain for AirTran. I'm not going to try to convert you, but dbaker is wrong. just look what he calls the AirTran website compared to the others. What about USAIR? They had 5 fatal accidents in the between 92 and 98 and they almost had one more during that period. Four of those accidents were pilot error. The American crash in 95 was pilot error as was the december 2001 crash because American was teaching the wrong recovery procedure for wake turbulence. I am not here to bad mouth any airline, but the fact remains the no machinery is 100% reliable and people make mistakes. Dbaker will argue that American, Delta, USAIR, etc. fly more flights so the odds are they must be safer. Tell that to the passengers aboard those flights that never made it home. The valujet crash of 96 was not pilot error, but it did cause the FAA to require that all commercial jets be equipped with cargo smoke detectors that the FAA had recommended in 1986. But the majors complained that it was to expensive so the FAA backed down. I fly with some of the finest pilots in the industry, I take safety very seriously, If I suspect the slightest malfunction I will take the safest course of action to see that it is resolved. We fly more than 10 million people a year on our new airplanes and that number increases 15% a year. For what it's worth, and from someone who has a clue about the airlines. I reccommend not flying on any former Eastern european block airline, or chinese airline. Beyond that WE ALL must adhere to the same flight and maintenance standards set forth by the FAA.

[haze]

Originally Posted by NiGHTS

He has never mentioned Continental or Southwest in any of his posts on the AirTran board.

Wrong

Originally Posted by NiGHTS

Many of the posts on this board are about the rapid expansion and growth of AirTran, much like Valujet was in 1996.

Heaven forbid a company in a free market economy grow and expand

Originally Posted by NiGHTS

You question his loyalties even though he hasn't shown any on any of the AirTran threads.

Wrong again

Originally Posted by NiGHTS

Although I can't fly on AirTran from where I am, if they did offer flights I would not fly with them for any reason. I made this decision myself after seeing what all of you have had to say...

Oh dear, why am I not surprised. Kinda like when someone goes on a television show to argue against a book, movie, article, etc but when questioned admit they haven't even read or seen the material. Don't fret though, with their cautious and steady growth I'm sure AirTran will be in a city near you soon enough. And I'm very proud of you for making your own decision yourself

Originally Posted by NiGHTS

...like he is the end all say all on the subject. While we all know he isn't the case, at least he carries himself with dignity and respects everyone who contributes to this board, even if they don't respect him...

Now that is just funny

Welcome to the frey, NiGHTS. Looks like you have a little more reading to do though

[NiGHTS]

Originally Posted by haze

Don't fret though, with their cautious and steady growth I'm sure AirTran will be in a city near you soon enough. And I'm very proud of you for making your own decision yourself

I'm not sure if AirTran would want to battle for market share with the all mighty WestJet..It would be a bloody battle indeed!

Originally Posted by haze

Welcome to the frey, NiGHTS. Looks like you have a little more reading to do though

Your right Haze. I admit that I do need to read a little bit more...believe me, it's pretty hard to keep up with it all, enjoyable as it is

Originally Posted by 717driver

The valujet crash of 96 was not pilot error, but it did cause the FAA to require that all commercial jets be equipped with cargo smoke detectors that the FAA had recommended in 1986.

I don't believe any one here has blamed the pilots for the crash unless I am mistaken.....But I do question why oxy cans were put on the plane to begin with. It seems like common sense to me to double check to see that the oxy cans were empty prior to loading them on the plane...but I am not quite sure how that process works at the airports...will someone who loads let me know?

[trs717]

…will someone who loads let me know?

I don't load, but let me put it in simple terms.

You are a supermarket chain. You sell meat as one of your thousands of products. You purchase that meat from a vendor. Now, you and the vendor had a good partnership for a while (say 5 years), and their meat has always been of a good quality. One day for what ever reason that same vendor sells you a batch of meat which is infected with some sort of bacteria. As a result 110 of you customers die from food poisoning.

WHO IS TO BLAME?

The officials (government agency) will go after the vendor who produced the faulty meat in a first place. That company would be subject to investigations as of why such a product was produced.

They will also fault you for the "lack of oversight" of your vendor. Sounds logical.

But, what were you supposed to do? Open every package of meat in the last 5 years you've been purchasing it from that vendor and trying each one to make sure it is safe? Or should you be able to trust the vendor who is certified to produce that meat by the same government agency which is now investigating it.

To the families of victims, YOU are the blame...YOU are the one they purchased that meat from. They are clueless of how it got there. They think you raise and slaughter cows in the back of your store. They don’t know that all supermarkets in the country used that same vendor, but you were the unlucky one to get is such a mess. They have a follower who gets on internet and tells people that they shouldn't buy anything at that supermarket, because it kills people.

Even after the vendor is found responsible, and is shutdown by the government, and its employees, who were involved are facing criminal charges, YOU come out as a bad guy.

So how can you change that? You change the name of you supermarket, you get your own cattle farm, and slaughter house and hire your own employees who you can trust to run it. And now your meat is on of the best in a country and people love it. AND NOONE IS GOONA DIE AGAIN...lesson is learned, don't you think.

For those not familiar… in ValuJet accident, Sabertech (a maintenance facility in Miami which was used by many major airlines) was that vendor.

[haze]

Originally Posted by trs717

So how can you change that? You change the name of you supermarket, you get your own cattle farm, and slaughter house and hire your own employees who you can trust to run it. And now your meat is on of the best in a country and people love it. AND NOONE IS GOONA DIE AGAIN...lesson is learned, don't you think.

Almost, but not quite. You don't just "change your name" like dbaker is implying. You (grocery A) merge with another seperate supermarket (grocery B) altogether, move your headquarters to their hometown, operate under their (grocery B) name, and adopt the policies you've listed above (better policies than either grocery A OR grocery B ever had). The resulting sum of those two smaller parts is far greater than either seperate entity...

And despite the recognized excellence of the new company, despite it's status as one of the best in the industry, despite receiving annual awards for food safety, there are those still calling it "grocery A" seven years out. Although that company and those procedures no longer exist. But there will always be those still calling it "grocery A", mostly just blind loyalists who still pledge their allegiance to the lumbering dinosaurs of the entrenched superchains despite their higher prices and outdated modus operendi. Mainly because "grocery B" is a threat to their beloved status quo's survival...

I've said it before, but I'll reiterate here: that sort of entrenched mentality is demonstrated brilliantly in the movie Tucker. I highly recommend it. Only this time, the better product is actually winning

[NiGHTS]

What was AirTrans safety record prior to the Valujet "merger?"

[jetmech717]

ILMAO

trs717 that was a very good way of looking at it...I loved it.
Well I see that I've left for a month and yet the same battle still rages within these pages of ITYT. I wonder yet again if the ratings are slipping here? Oh well.
"Nights" hey guess what???? I dont care about AirTrans record before the merger and I dont care about ValuJet before the merger. All I care about is the AirTran Airways that you see and hear about TODAY....right here and right now. All you need to know is Approx (80) 717's with the oldest one being 5 years and (7) 737's with the oldest being 4 months. I just read were a passenger was mad because he got a voucher to McDonalds when his flight had to air return for a blown tire. He was mad because apparently the McDonalds workers were mad about working overtime? I'm not sure that we have that kinda power with McDonalds but ok. Then when he gets a free rental car and free tickets.....oh the captain did the right thing by being safe and SAFETY first yeahhh for everyone. My point is that we have procedures for things and not everyone is going to be happy with the way these procedures have to be done. We probably fly approx 1 million passengers a month. Do you expect me to believe that every single one of them had the time of their life. Most people are happy to get from point A to B with friendly and helpful service. Still their are others who might have been upset because they only got pretzels and coke, they had to check their bag, the plane left 1hr late due to weather. I actually see people argue to get their money back because we left late because of weather. O.K. lets take-off in a T-Storm. Alot of people forget about safety when they need to get were their going, but lucky for them its always on our mind because we do it everyday, and I refuse to hear someone slam the airline for making the right decision and returning to the airport for a blown tire. What happens if the capt puts the gear up with a blown tire.......It just may not come back down. This is all stuff that happens everyday in the life of aviation (and that goes for all airlines). If you fly enough something is going to inconvinience your schedule eventually. No matter who you fly. This is the art of flying. Thank you and goodnight.
By the way Haze and TRS and all the supporters keep up the good work.

[NiGHTS]

Originally Posted by jetmech717

"Nights" hey guess what???? I dont care about AirTrans record before the merger and I dont care about ValuJet before the merger. All I care about is the AirTran Airways that you see and hear about TODAY....right here and right now.

So you don't care about the past at all? You don't care about the 110 who died? You don't care about the near fatal accidents? You don't care about the people who were left behind? The people who just about had their lives taken away? It appears the only thing you care about is yourself since you are so concerned about defending your employer to ensure that it continues to grow, giving you some job security. People who forget the past are doomed to repeat it, regardless of the liverly on the tail.

I love how most of the pro-airtran responses attempt to be closed ended so that they are not questioned and accepted at face value. Lets face reality people, there is never going to be any point in time where the other viewpoint is accepted. Regardless of how AirTran is now, it's based on how Valujet was THEN including the problems and the safety awards that you all proudly speak about. AirTran may not be Valujet in name, but you at least have to admit that there is a relationship between the two that goes beyond a simple name change.

No one answered my question. I suppose i'll attempt to look it up myself

[jetmech717]

Mr Nights said:

So you don't care about the past at all? You don't care about the 110 who died? You don't care about the near fatal accidents? You don't care about the people who were left behind? The people who just about had their lives taken away?

O.K. Baker junior AKA "nights".....you can twist around words all you want! Of course the sympathys went out to all involved, but whats done is done and there is nothing you or I can do about it today! The only thing I can do is learn from the PAST. So I apply this to my job and that is why safety is always first. I have grounded a plane when it was fully loaded and about to push the gate.....let me tell you those people who had to get off the plane and wait for another one arent thinking about safety...they are pissed off because there flight didnt leave on time. They dont care, escpecially the people who fly all the time. They would try to talk the pilot in flying on one engine if they had to. This is because they get complacient and think that aviation is just routine. Well guess what MR. Nights???? ITS NOT!!!!!!! And things happen to all airlines everyday. So while your out digging up AirTrans OLD safety record feel free to look up other airline crashes also and you come back here with the info and I'll show you a change that was made to commercial aircraft because of it.
MR Nights yet still:

Regardless of how AirTran is now, it's based on how Valujet was THEN including the problems and the safety awards that you all proudly speak about. AirTran may not be Valujet in name, but you at least have to admit that there is a relationship between the two that goes beyond a simple name change.

You can have you opinion about an airline that doesnt even fly to your location and you have never even flown on........I myself....an AirTran employee (for 5yrs) am telling you know that it is a different company with different management, different personnel, much different A/C (youngest All Boeing fleet in the country I might add), different attitude. We would like to look foward and see a positive future with positive growth. And I would appreciate if you would let the AirTran Airways maintenace dept keep the honor of the awards given to us by the FAA. I'm pretty sure we deserve that much!!!!!

[NiGHTS]

Woah woah woah. I have no association with dbaker. I only have respect for him as a poster, as I do for you, haze, and everyone else on here.

Originally Posted by jetmech717

Of course the sympathys went out to all involved, but whats done is done and there is nothing you or I can do about it today! The only thing I can do is learn from the PAST.

Originally Posted by jetmech717

"Nights" hey guess what???? I dont care about AirTrans record before the merger and I dont care about ValuJet before the merger. All I care about is the AirTran Airways that you see and hear about TODAY....right here and right now.

This to me is a bit of a contradiction. You don't care about the past of AirTran/Valujet yet you take what you can from what happened and employ it to your daily work?....Can you explain yourself a little better so I can understand what you mean?

Originally Posted by jetmech717

And I would appreciate if you would let the AirTran Airways maintenace dept keep the honor of the awards given to us by the FAA. I'm pretty sure we deserve that much!!!!!

I never once took the honor of your service awards, thats why I made sure I mentioned it as well as the problems. It's good that AirTran is getting awards for their service department, but we have yet to see if that continues trend in the long term. Let the number of problems be the judge of that If you are so sure that AirTran has changed, we'll see proof of it over time.

[trs717]

Bottom line, if you fly commercially you will be inconvenienced. I had a lady tell me last week that she left her wallet in another plane while she connected in Atlanta. And all of her life…was in that wallet. I felt very badly for her. But we had 117 people on board and it was departure time. She was mad that we wouldn’t wait 10 minutes while she went looking for her wallet. She will probably complain and will swear to never fly AirTran again, but in the end…it was her, who lost that wallet. 116 of other passengers managed to keep theirs. So why should they suffer. We provide public service and individual needs are sometimes overlooked. We can’t move a standby passenger up the list, because he is traveling to a funeral and this is the most important event in his life. We have procedures to follow, and laws to obey. Especially when it comes to safety. Now, there are those passengers who get their way in aviation. They force their pilots to go, against their will and judgment. That’s called owning your own jet. I’ve done that kind of flying and hated every minute of it. We often hear about those passengers as victims of a Learjet crash that was attempting an approach in an unsuitable weather, or G-4 flying into a mountain, because the crew was exhausted from a long duty day, etc. Fortunately airline crews are never concerned with passenger convenience, but only with their safety. So, yeah, there will always be those who are upset. When I have to delay a flight due to weather or mechanical problem, I try to be very informative on the PA and to make it clear that I’m doing this for everyone’s well being. I tell them that: “I know we have a schedule to keep, however, that schedule is amendable, and your lives are not.” Almost everyone can understand that, and usually they thank me on the way out. All of a sudden that delay takes a whole new meaning to them.
As an example, here is a problem that instructors like to give captains in recurrent schools: You have a passenger who is collapsed on a floor. The Flight Attendant managed to find a doctor on board, and the doctor says that this passenger will probably not make it if we’re not on the ground in 20 minutes. There is an airport close-by, however the weather there is not legal for landing. The closest airport with good weather is 1 hour away.
Now, Boeing 717 can land automatically in very poor weather, however the airport that is near-by is not approved for that kind of landing. That doesn’t mean that the airplane can’t still do it. And as a captain I can wave all the FAA rules if situation requires so. One might think, let’s go ahead and land…we know the airplane will do a great job and we’ll save that poor guy. But the correct answer is: 116 + 5 ± 1. What that means is, we have 116 people on board, plus 5 crew, plus or minus one. So you’re expected to got to the airport 1 hour away and not to put anyone else in danger, even if it means that the poor guy dies. Now, if we were told that there was a bomb on board and it would go off in 20 minutes, that would be a different story.


Lessons of our past are not forgotten here at AirTran. But referencing to our past as a reflection of our safety today, is totally inaccurate.

As a side note. Just returned from a trip. While cruising along from DC to Atlanta we heard Delta telling the ATC that they had a fuel leak, a few minutes later they reported one engine shutdown and that they were declaring an emergency and landing at nearest airport. So things like that happen every day. And that day there were 100+ some passenger that would swear to never fly on Delta again. You see what I mean?

[NiGHTS]

Well I certainly like how you explained it, trs717, rather then jetmech717's explination.

Safety is more then just goes what on in the air though. It's something that must be done at all levels of the company. Pilots and Mechanics can be safety conscious, but what if the corporate culture is not? AirTran keeps on expanding and growing at such a fast rate. Something has to give at some point.

[jetmech717]

AirTran keeps on expanding and growing at such a fast rate. Something has to give at some point.

Nights, please explain to me how exactly AirTran is growing at such a rapid pace? Now that we arent expanding in MDW I think all we did last year is move to (1) new city (I believe). Other than ordering some good American made airplanes (which helps the economy) I think were expanding rather smartly. With all the bigger airlines backing out of places this is the perfect time to gather up any landing slots or gates that come open because they may not be available next time. Also I would like to say that the corporate culture here is just like you would find at most other airlines, And contrary to what you think...the pilots and technicians work for the FAA (since they license us) Were just employeed and paid by AirTran.....In a twisted kinda way. So we wouldnt let any upper management effect our judgement anyways if that was the case.

[trs717]

ahh???

Did anyone hear about Egypt Air starting a new service? Non-stop from JFK to JFK jr.

I know it's pretty bad... Sorry.

[jetmech717]

Since this guy posted this spam on the AirTran forum......Maybe we are flying to Eyypt next??????????? lol

[Bacchus Rhodri]

Hi
You can listen to it before takeoff, during takeoff, and also while you're in the air. The flight attendant will announce over the loud speaker as well as its linked to the receiver on each seat's armrest but it hurts my ears when you listen to the flight attendant through the XM Radio as you can't change the volume of the flight attendant's voice, only the station you are listening to.

[Doko Deska]

Welcome to the frey Nights.. Glad to have you on board.

It's fun to talk to these brainwashed professionals about the company they work for (not with). Ask them what it's like to be considered the lowest paid workers, brow beaten by the most profitable airline in the U.S. today.

Imagine what their paychecks would look like WITHOUT a union. Wait.. they don't have to imagine.. Just take a look at their ramp reservation and gate agents.