As cost-conscious airline passengers increasingly trade up for tickets on legacy carriers, what's a ULCC to do? Brian Sumers, Jon Ostrower and Brett Snyder discuss the new strategies Frontier Airlines is adopting in the face of this trend: new fare families to match the legacy airlines, changes to its network, and its fleet strategy (and order book).

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The Brazilian manufacturer has a decision to make. Should it focus on what it already does well, including regional jets, small narrowbodies, and business jets? Or should it take a chance and build a bigger airplane that might compete directly with the 737 and A320 families? Jon Ostrower and Brian Sumers discuss Embraer’s dilemma in this week’s episode.

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JSX and Contour have completely different business models, but they both have something in common.  They are able to take advantage of a loophole that allows them to run their operations more flexibly in terms of pilots, security, and more under Parts 135 and 380. The industry is divided on whether this is good or bad, but it has generated some real debate in Washington. Jon Ostrower and Brett Snyder talk about what's happening as well as the pros and cons.

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American Airlines has a bold, new strategy that forgoes managed corporate bookings for direct bookings while remaking its entire sales effort. With the first quarter over and done, how is that plan-turned-strategy working out so far? This week, Brian Sumers, Brett Snyder and Jon Ostrower discuss the first indicators of American's grand plan.

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It's not just Boeing that's causing acute headaches for airlines. Pratt & Whitney's geared turbofan engine, which has been in operation since 2016 on Airbus single-aisle aircraft, has serious issues with reliability and durability, and a seriously long MRO timeline. The engine itself is an innovation — a major leap in fuel efficiency, which will only become more necessary — but will these issues threaten Pratt & Whitney's comeback? Make airlines more risk-averse when innovation is sorely needed? Create a RASM-related silver lining? That's what Jon Ostrower, Brett Snyder and Brian Sumers discuss on this week's episode.

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Two U.S. airlines have reported earnings so far, and it's United and Delta: two airlines that increasingly have a lot in common. Brett Snyder and Brian Sumers discuss the numbers each airline reported, and what they shared about corporate travel, the summer travel season forecast, the importance of brand and reliability, and more.

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Or: what happened in Boston and Seattle when Delta established hubs there. Brett Snyder, Brian Sumers and Jon Ostrower discuss how Alaska defended its turf against Delta, and how JetBlue faltered when Delta expanded in Boston. The particulars of each city — their changing economies and corporate needs, their specific brand loyalty, and regional feed and fleet  — make an interesting case study.

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Jon Ostrower and Brian Sumers discuss the current moment in Indian aviation, focusing on the two largest carriers in the market. At Air India, Campbell Wilson, a former top executive of Singapore Air, is tasked to remake the flag carrier under new private ownership. Pieter Elbers, the former CEO of KLM, now leads the very profitable and market-dominant IndiGo, despite growing pains. Brian and Jon also discuss the forces that are perhaps containing the growth of the Indian market: infrastructure, aircraft availability, and competitors in the Middle East.

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Jon Ostrower recaps and explains a very tumultuous week at Boeing: a shake-up in its executive leadership, prompted by the leadership of four U.S. airlines deciding it was time to bypass the C-suite and ask for a meeting with Boeing's board. Jon discusses those developments and what's ahead for Boeing with Brett Snyder and Brian Sumers.
 
You can read Jon's reporting on Boeing here.

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Brett Snyder and Brian Sumers discuss the recent moves of JetBlue and the early signs of what the airline's new leadership is planning, post-NEA and post-Spirit. Jon Ostrower joins from the road to discuss JetBlue's varied fleet.

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