Aviation Integrity

We've started a new LinkedIn discussion group "Aviation Integrity" and you are welcome and encouraged to join. Recent economic events threaten many people's jobs - in our industry and others. We're very focused on safety, but there are many other forms of wrongdoing - stealing, fraud, vandalism, discrimination, design shortcuts, manufacturing errors, environmental abuse, occupational hazards and the list goes on. One correspondent explained their staff were so scared of losing their jobs right now, other employees could steal in front of them and they would not say a word. This does not bode well in an industry where integrity is everything. We performed a global survey in June to determine what methods (if any) there were in place to capture information on wrongdoing anonymously, to obtain information across organizations, to find the value of such systems. The results of the survey have been published. You can read the report at http://www.sharp-resources.com/userdown/integrity.pdf

Working Harder

I think we actually got into the recession in the first place because wwe tried and worked harder at all the wrong things without any regards to checks and balances whether internal or external.

The problem does not lie in the "harder" equation but more in HARDER at what. The innovation and creativity comes into play ensuring that the fundamentals of the economy and the way we approach it are sound. As in all human activities the pendlum swings to the other side with a vengance and we will put checks and balances that will invariably go way beyond what is required. Once we have defined what is it that we need to fix it then yes, by all means let us all work and try harder.

Air travel is a vital component of the global economy

Air travel is a vital component of the global economy. However, to say that the airlines are being or had been subsidised by governments in various ways is only partly true
1. Government ownership does not necessarily translate into subsidy
2. Subsidy to Manufacturers is not necessarily dirctely passed to airlines
3. Export credits are not a subsidy but a financing tool
Airlines seem to be weathering this recession better than most, thanks to an oil price spike that forced the airlines to review their fleets and introduce efficiencies and of course the oil crises weeded out the weaker airlines. Governments did not bother to bail out the airlines then and I do not see why now. 2009 Q1 results have been affected but they are not worse than during the oil crisis, one might say that for some they are actually better, but then we have to see Q2 and Q3 results to see the effect of a deepening recession. The industry is very resilient and reacts quicker to changing environments. than most other sectors maybe because of the sensivity of air travel to current conditions being political (wars and conflicts), health (SARS, Avian Flu and H1N1), and economic conditions (recessions and oil prices). All these conditions affect travel demand and in certain conditions airline have no direct influence to change the conditions.
Demand is less in most areas and we are seeing deep discounting and I am sure in time we will see airlines going out of business and certain government airlines getting huge subsidies.
However, the area where governments may have to intervene is Aircraft Financing. The credit crunch is curtailing the ability of airlines to borrow to get aircraft that they may need to expand or improve their efficiencies.Governments have can offer more export credits and maybe loan guarantees. No matter what the form of subsidy it will not be more than a fraction that other sectors have recieved”

Airports and Emotions

Airports for me present mixed emotions.Traveling back to see my family fills me with joy and anticipation, going back after being with my family I am filled with a tinge of saddness. Going on business thereis always that excitement of what to come, how would it go, what kind of adventure awaits me. I enjoy observing people and wondering what is behind the smile or the tears, transiting an airport gives that sense of detachment of being alone randomly observing people sometime not more for a few seconds but always in awe of the human capacity for joy, love, saddness, loneliness and many other emotions that pass by so fast. And when I am bored I watch how well or bad services are provided to customers by motivated and disinterested staff. I watch the ability of people to totally ignore their customers who are a few feet about them. Airports are learning experiences mostly about me then the multi national multitudes

Strategic Planning in a changing world

Strategic planning hinges on the VISION provided by the top. Once this VISION is communicated and understood throughout the organisation, the rest is somewhat easier. Crafting the strategy of how to fulfil the VISION becomes a more manageable task.
The biggest pitfall is when organisations require strategic planners to provide the VISION. Planners are multi tasking, innovative and some of them visionary. However their task is to map out actions and processes that will get us to that vision. Constant review of the environment(s) around us will allow timely changes to the strategy and as a result the way we conduct business.

"US airlines need to get smaller to get profitable" US Airways CEO

US Airways chief says airline industry needs to get smaller to get profitable, improve service http://bit.ly/KtQD6 .
This is something I agree totally with, the industry needs to get smaller in order to grow and definitely improve service to match those in Europe, the Far East and MENA.
The Majors have slowly moved towards LCC practices to improve their cash flow with ancillary charges such as baggage, Wi-Fi and others in addition to stopping beverage and food services on shorter sectors in order to keep their tickets as low and competitive as possible.
What I disagree with is the means the industry should become smaller. He advocates consolidation and mergers and acquisitions as means to improve efficiencies. Definitely, a good merger will improve efficiencies but not necessarily services and definitely will not make the industry smaller. Consolidation and Chapter 11 were used in the last decades as means to improve the industry but unfortunately without any success, the industry has failed to reinvent itself or transform its markets in spite of several opportunities such as 9/11, SARS, Avian Flu, 150 USD barrel of oil, the worst recession since the 1930s and now H1N1.
As the recession deepens and traffic figure take a nose dive, measures put in place last year during the oil price crisis are losing steam. The recession and the rising oil prices (70 USD a barrel) will start a new spiral of ailing and failing airlines. No Chapter 11 please, allow them to fail, this is the only means of removing capacity from the market. The effect of a failing Major Airline will not be as catastrophic as we all think.
Unemployment is the primary concern, however we are starting to hear about impending layoffs. The net effect on unemployment will be minimal as carriers pick up capacity in the affected hubs in order to capitalise on available traffic. The other issue would be aircraft availability and prices, as traffic nosedived, carriers as usual brought in their older, less efficient, less green but smaller aircraft in order to reduce capacity to match demand. The plans to retire these older aircraft get shelved every time traffic slows down. It is about time MD80s and older B737s get retired, and newer and more efficient greener aircraft come into service. That will bolster sagging aircraft lease rates and reduce carbon dioxide footprints and hopefully the Emission Trading System (ETS) charges that will be added to our tickets in the near future.
It has been said often, that we should not waste a good crisis, so far we have wasted every crisis, let us not waste this one to reinvent the industry.

Ethical Questions related to On Board Broad band

Connectivity in the sky is coming whether we like it or not and it is going to be at a very affordable price and in all classes of travel. This will raise questions some ethical like connecting to questionable sites like porn or extremist organisations which could be viewed by someone sitting close by to the use of audio and voice.

Audio does not pause much of a problem since most people use audio devices like MP3 and iPods in flight. That brings up the issue of voice, currently airlines have a handset at every seat for making satcom calls and the only reason no one uses the service is cost. As costs are rduced and fees become lower wheteher one uses the handset provided by the airline or their own mobile unit becomes irrelevant. Voice was and is an issue that has been with us for years but no one had to address it because it was not used extensively if at all.

Airlines should start thinking seriously of a solution to a problem that has been dormant for years. Maybe the solution in providing every passenger with a top of the range noise cancelling head set.

Affordable connectivity will pause problems, however how big of a problem, no one knows until these services are extensively used.