Alaska Air files with DOT for LAX-LAP

[sourcreamnjive]

Allen Welle bought 2, Larry Bussard bought 2, Legal Ling bought 2, I bought 1, ICEE bought 1, Danny McFarlane bought 1, Denny Fields bought 1, Tim Mosdale bought 2, Patrick Hereria bought 1, Gaspar Medina bought 1, BajaDave bought 1, Hammerhead bought 1, Joey805 bought 1, Carnivore bought 1, Flipper bought 1, I have 8 others trying to get tickets now....it ain't over till someone farts on the bus!

[Joey805]

Originally Posted by sourcreamnjive

Allen Welle bought 2, Larry Bussard bought 2, Legal Ling bought 2, I bought 1, ICEE bought 1, Danny McFarlane bought 1, Denny Fields bought 1, Tim Mosdale bought 2, Patrick Hereria bought 1, Gaspar Medina bought 1, BajaDave bought 1, Hammerhead bought 1, Joey805 bought 1, Carnivore bought 1, I have 8 others trying to get tickets now....it ain't over till someone farts on the bus!

Where is Flipper's ticket?

[sourcreamnjive]

Flipper, who's Flipper?

[bajadave]

So what does this all mean??????? Is Alaska buying our areo tickets? Or are we just waiting for areo to get their sh*t together.

[sourcreamnjive]

We're waiting for Aero to get their "PooPoo" together!

[Joey805]

Maybe we should start walking now....

[Keone]

Hi Guys:

(My)Sirena figured I'd better get in on this so it doesn't spiral outta control. I'm holding 6 Aero Cal tickets myself...let me just put down some "stream of consciousness thoughts" because it's almost impossible to connect-the-dots about this whole Aero Cal mess...

So...here goes...

1. Aero Cal was shut down on April 3 supposedly for 4 days. It has now been almost 3 months. Mexican FAA wanted to do safety inspections. Our own FAA in the U.S. never said these planes were unsafe.

2. Aero Cal has always been willing and ready to fly. The whole town here (which by the way is dying...95 percent empty and people have no work or food) supports Aero Cal and even had about 3000 people march to the airport last month. It has affected close to 600 families directly related to the airline not to mention hotels, restaurants, taxi drivers, captains and yes...even one short brown funny looking Tailhunter guy. I lost almost all of my April, May and June clientele plus many others the rest of the year who understandably could not wait until the airlines (or someone) came back online.

3. For those clients still coming down, there have been two alternatives. Most have been flying into Cabo and we're arranging shuttles. Others have been flying Aero Mexico from Los Angeles direct to La Paz, but only on Thursday/Sunday/ Thursday

4. For those who have held Aero Cal tickets...if you bought them with a credit card, it seems that it's just a matter of filing paperwork with the credit card company and charges have been getting reveresed. I've not heard a single person telling me they've had a problem going that route.

5. Aero Cal is not refunding until they get back online (whenever that is).

6. The current "party line" from Aero Cal is that this week they are supposed to start taking reservations and by the first week of July they will be in the air. I've seen the planes flying. I have friends here in La Paz who are pilots and flight attendants and they've been chomping at the bit for weeks. (See my suspicions below about this all being political and tied to the national elections which just happen to take place that first week of July!)

7. This continues to NOT be an Aero Cal issue. They are ready to fly. The Mexican FAA is the culprit keeping the planes on the ground. When they do come back, it's not going to be the same airline we've often made jokes at. Instead of serving 32 destinations with 200 flights/day, it will be a newer skinnier airline with only 5-8 destinations and only one international destination...Los Angeles. No telling, however, how many days a week it will fly.

8. I know so many of you have got plans to fly later in the year. My advice? I really don't know what to tell you. We've been pumped up so many times each and every week thinking that Aero Cal is coming back only to be told "one more week." Exhale...mierda...

You have to do what you have to do. I don't like losing the business. Even moreso, I hate it when people have vacations they are looking forward to with their families and friends and it falls on it's face. If you can wait to see what's happening...then wait. If you can't then you can't and that's perfectly acceptable and necessary. I"ve had so many clients wait until the last minute hoping someone starts flying only to finally cancel or postpone. Next week, I'm supposed to be pretty busy and had everything all lined up. In fact, I was nearly sold out. Then, over the last 3 days, I've had over 60 cancelations and now I have days when I have only 1-3 boats out per day! Or none!!!
So...you can see how this impacts us too.

9. As far as any refunds from us...ABSOLUTELY!!! I am getting so good at writing refund checks it's scary. Your funds are always put in a trust account and safe. Many clients know they are coming back and have elected to just leave the funds as credit with us. Others understandably want refunds and with a simple few keystrokes on the computer, we wisk off a refund check to you from our U.S. bank. Most amigos get their checks within 4-7 days from request.

10. The presidential election is July 2nd. We all believe this is tied directly to the Aero Cal fiasco. I could write volumes about the political connection that's keeping Aero Cal on the ground while the Capital of S. Baja and other destinations die. Suffice to say that I'm keeping an eye on the election on July 2nd. JULY 3 IS EXACTLY 90 DAYS FROM THE DATE THEY WERE GROUNDED and the Mexican FAA said it might take 90 days to complete their "bogus inspections."

11. Alot of people ask me why doesn't another airlines just start flying these routes. Not as easy as that. The money and logistics of setting up a new route isn't done with the snap of a finger from what I'm told. Personnel, maintenance staff, logistical staff, buildings, advertising, offices...not to mention planes have to be set up. You just don't snap your fingers and find extra planes to fly a route. They would either have to lease/buy new aircraft of pull them frome existing routes.

Additionally, an airline has to actualy apply for a route and here in Mexico, an airline has to guarantee the Mexican government a certain amount of tax revenue. If the airline falls short projections, it still has to make good to the Mexican government for the funds. Given the cost of operations, rising fuel costs, declining passengers, etc. it's a big decision for an air carrier to change routes. Besides that, the fact that Aero Cal is still dangling...other carriers are hesitant to make a commitment then be undercut when Aero Cal comes back...if it comes back!

Anyway...that's my two cents from down here at ground zero in La Paz. As I said, I could write pages and pages about what's happening. As I sit here today....if you can wait, hold on about making any decisions about your air until after the elections on July 2nd...or at least that first week and the dust settles.

Good luck to us all!
Jonathan