Robert Reich
Is it possible that airline passengers are experiencing soaring prices and bad service because the number of domestic carriers has shrunk from 12 in 1980 to 4 today — with many cities served by only 1 or 2?
Dec 30, 2022 at 4:17pmWeb
Show threadBigDave Dec 30, 2022
@rbreich
Certainly part of the issue, for sure.
Show threadAdamDec 30, 2022
@rbreich while I agree reduced competition is a problem I think the numbers are wrong I can easily count more then 4 without looking it up:
AA, United, Alaska, Jet Blue, Hawaiian, Southwest, Frontier, Alligiant, just off the top of my head.
Show threadThomas H Jones IIDec 30, 2022

@tweak @rbreich

AA, United, Delta and SWA are *major* carriers - having 500+ planes (plus regional partners' fleets) and thousands of daily routes. The others you list don't quite compare.

Show threadAdamDec 30, 2022
@ferricoxide @rbreich all he said was domestic carriers, those are all domestic carriers.
Show threadThomas H Jones IIDec 30, 2022

@tweak @rbreich

Pick a random origin or destination airport: which domestic carriers are you most likely to find at the selected origin or destination airports?

I mean, Mesa is a domestic carrier, but you're not going to find them at a significant percentage of airports. Similar for Jet Blue and some others you listed.

Show threadAdamDec 30, 2022
@ferricoxide @rbreich I totally agree with what you’re saying and agree there needs to be a lot more competition and much more scrutiny on industry consolidation (in all industries), my point was only in regards to his numbers and math.
Show threadThomas H Jones IIDec 30, 2022

@tweak @rbreich

The small airlines thing used to trip me out when I was flying nationally on a regular basis. Was often a case of "yeah, it was ticketed through <AIRLINE> and the plane bore their livery, but the flight was actually operated by <REGIONAL_AIRLINE>"

And, while I loved JetBlue, they rarely went to the airports I wanted to go to. Worse, they never left from my closest airport (<10mi from my house), meaning I'd have to catch a $75 cab to get to the airport they DID operate out of.

Show threadAdamDec 30, 2022
@ferricoxide @rbreich our regulators have been way to lax even under Democratic administrations allowing huge consolidation amounts all industries leading to massive reduction in competition. Looks like Lina Khan is attempting to reverse that course finally.
Show threadThomas H Jones IIDec 30, 2022

@tweak @rbreich

"Regulatory capture" is a mfer.

Show threadAnita / Married with dinnerDec 30, 2022
@rbreich this is one big reason why we won’t live in a second-tier city. (Not that we’re flying much these days, but someday this pandemic will end…)
Show threadO’denneyDec 30, 2022
@rbreich Could it be that this pyramid scheme we refer to as Capitalism has been a huge burden on the masses while enriching the elite oligarchy? And in this age of mass information, if the masses could only read through the bullshit, but no, we still lost the house.
Show threadThomas H Jones IIDec 30, 2022

@rbreich

Being someone that flew for work in the 90s – when we still had a bunch of carrier-options – prices were much higher in absolute (rather than inflation-adjusted) dollars than now. Planes and airports were both far less packed and major weather-events didn't create the kind of chaos that this year's did. Maybe this is one of those places where we really don't want to exacerbate things by a race-to-the-bottom on prices (services, etc.).

Show threadMFKMikeDec 30, 2022
@rbreich every Market with less than 7 relatively evenly matched competitors needs to be broken up.
Show threadChristopher WalkerDec 30, 2022
@rbreich apologists for the concentration of corporate power always point to Adam Smith to justify a hands-off approach to regulating capitalism. But Smith plainly said that competition is the key to capitalism delivering social benefits. Consolidation is anti-competitive.
Show threadFoxBossDec 30, 2022
@rbreich America needs high-speed rail.
Show threadFlightless BirdJan 1, 2023
@foxexecutive @rbreich Yes. This thread is quite sad. No reference to reducing carbon emissions.
Show threadinput.translationDec 30, 2022

@rbreich

#irony… cf. Aeroflot, 1971

Show threadBig Head TalesDec 30, 2022
@rbreich Perhaps airlines are using this “shortage” as a way to Jack up prices, it’s the new retail model.
Show threadLizGDec 30, 2022
@rbreich gee I wonder
Show threadDuaneHereDec 30, 2022
@rbreich Not just possible, but probable! I don't understand why we allowed anti-competitive mergers to shrink the "free market" for US airlines.
Show threadStu Duerson, machina exo deusDec 30, 2022

@rbreich
There is a clear lesson in the Southwest debacle about concentration.

Southwest is a niche carrier, and look at the turmoil they created with a system failure.

Now, imagine that was Delta.

Show threadenmodo ⚛️ 🧬 🇺🇦 🍉Dec 30, 2022
@rbreich I'm sure people will say "but look, prices are actually way lower than in 1980!" completely ignoring that in Europe you can fly 1,500 miles for $30 and have all the protections against cancellation and being abandoned away from home.
Show threadvinifraDec 30, 2022
@rbreich
is it possible that the US rail system is antiquated and in such disarray that it offers no alternative to air travel?
Show threadOgie Ogilthorpe ✅Dec 30, 2022
@rbreich there’s more than 4 domestic airlines. Also, if you compare the cost of flying in the 80’s and 90’s to today (adjusting for inflation) you will see it was much more expensive back then.
Show threadRD1054Dec 31, 2022
@rbreich Yes!
Show threadGurtbeef RobeDec 31, 2022
@rbreich as I’ve said 1000x’s, there’s never been a corporate merger of businesses that benefited the consumer, only stockholders or executives. For some reason, the govt always lets these happen but the people ALWAYS get screwed
Show threadLester WardDec 31, 2022
Imagine a holiday season where one of the X airlines has a massive problem with its scheduling software, one that messes up its ability to operate properly for days. Is it better for passengers in this case if X is 4 or 12? Consolidating only brings "efficiency" if the thing being consolidated doesn't fail.
Show threadBouriquetJan 1, 2023
@rbreich It’s part of the reason but airplanes now cost nearly 10 times more than 20-30 years ago, with more advanced designs that are safer and use less fuel than before. And people expect perfection
Show threadBouriquetJan 1, 2023
@rbreich and stockholders expect a piece of everything. Safety has got to come first. Stressed out crews can make minor mistakes