It's deja vu all over again

I'm sure that's what Yogi Berra will say when he hears that Virgin America Airlines is vying for the right to fly from Dallas Love Field.  It would be a real coup as they are fighting the big kid on the block, Southwest Airlines, for those last 2 gates at Dallas' in-town airport.

Sitting there in Fargo, ND you might ask, "Why should I care about this?  I'm sitting here in Fargo, North #@$%^ Dakota?"  Here's why:

It was in 1971 from Dallas' Love Field that Southwest Airlines flew its first scheduled flight.  It was the "rebel with a cause" that stood the airline industry on its head.  For the next 30-something years it moved in to one airport after another and undercut the going airfare there by 50% or more.  We all benefited.

The airline execs said this caused much turmoil in the industry, causing some of the weaker carriers to go belly up.  Consumers said YEAH BABY!  

SWA's eventual CEO Herb Kelleher (now retired) is an absolutely brilliant, crazy guy who put sex appeal back in the air.  I like Southwest Airlines.  It's still based in Dallas, and is an absolute hoot to fly.  But it is no longer the precocious kid with big plans.  It isn't even a true "low cost airline" anymore. 

Now the Wright Amendment (the political deal that inadvertently pretty much gave Love Field to Southwest) is being repealed and other carriers are fighting for the right to go toe-to-toe with SWA.  Now the winner has been announced and it is......

 

....yes....Sir Richard Branson and his Virgin America Airlines.

It's like Herb Kelleher had an illegitimate son and he started his own airline, too.  Both are flamboyant, both love the airline biz, both love ladies in sexy uniforms, and both know how to treat customers.  Now we'll see if Sir Richard can set Dallas on fire today like Herb did in 1971.

Straight from Herb's playbook.

Do you see it?

I'm glad Dallas didn't cave and give the 2 gates up for grabs to the entrenched 500 pound gorilla.  SWA already has 97% of the business at Dallas Love.  That's enough too much.  Competition is good, and I think Virgin America will be good for us consumers and will keep SWA on their toes, too.

Welcome to Dallas Virgin America!  Now go out there and shake up the airline biz just like Herb did.  (Might you some day make it to Fargo, North #@$%^ Dakota?   I sorta promised.... :)

S

Coffee, tea, or an exit row seat?

I wonder how long it will be before some airline marketing type decides thay can charge a premium price on exit row seating?  Just one more menu item for you to choose from when booking a trip.

"Priority boarding....a mere $20."  Nope.

"A cocktail, Sir?  Only $5?"  Umm....sure.

"Would you like a sandwich....only $8?"  Eight bucks?  No thanks.

Think you might need to use our convenient in-flight toilet facilities?  Just $3?"  No, it's only a 2 hour flight.  I can hold it.

"How about an exit row seat for a measly $100 additional?  Can save your life....whatdayasay, sport?"

After the Asiana 777 crash in San Francisco I'll bet the flight attendants will have a plane full of attentive passengers when they give their pre-flight spiel about how to bail out in an emergency.  I always volunteer for exit row seating because you generally have more leg room there, but I'm not sure I'd pay for it.  But of course I always know where my exits are anyway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back a dozen years ago when I was active in the airshow biz I completed ARFF (Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting) training at Dallas' Love Field.  The Dallas FD periodically puts on training classes for suburban fire departments that have small airports in their area.  It was a very eye opening experience.

Not me.  This was pinched off the internet for example.

We trained on the Southwest Airlines mock-fuselage at their Dallas home base.  In one exercise we were all seated inside, then they pumped in some sort of cloudy gas so thick you couldn't see the end of your nose.  Then they told us to find the exit, open it, and slide out.  You meet the nicest people crawling around on the floor of an airliner.  :)

Next we had to gear up.  We put on full firefighter "bunker gear"....heavy boots, fire coat and pants, nomex hood, air mask, helmet, gloves, and a Scott Air Pack.  Then in 3-man teams we had to climb a ladder up onto the wing (not easy dressed like we were), open the escape door from the outside, and climb in.  That opening is smaller than it looks.  It was very hard for me to get my head down and under while at the same time picking my feet/legs up and over.  I was pretty much folded in half.  And I don't fold in half very gracefully. *no*

Then we had to find the injured guy (a 160 pound dead weight dummy), unbuckle him, pick him up (it's all about leverage), get him down that narrow aisle onto a backboard, and slide him down the chute, all while being timed.  The professional firefighter teams did it in 3-4 minutes.  My team of amateurs did it in....let's just say my guy would have been dead, cold, stiff, and ripe before we got him out.  

Then we got to go out and play with the big trucks.  FAA requirements say that equipment must be able to get to any spot on the airport within 3 minutes.  Because of this some airports are so large they have multiple fire stations.  (DFW has four.)

The surprising thing to me was how fast they are!  And when they get to where they need to be they can dump a LOT of water/foam/whatever in no time.  As soon as they arrive the driver, using a joystick like a video game, can aim his water cannon and unload in seconds.  Very impressive!  I got to use the joystick and squirt water, but they wouldn't let me drive the truck.  I can't imagine why?  ;)

Bottom line:  These guys and ladies are VERY good.  And they go out on calls a lot more often than you might imagine.  Fortunately most incidents turn out to be non-events as the landings turn out OK.

Point is....be thankful for our first responders, pay attention to what your flight attendants say, and bring your own crappy sandwich.  ;)

S