Airlines Confidential Podcast
Business og økonomiHosted by Scott McCartney, Fmr. Travel Editor/"Middle Seat" Columnist for The Wall Street Journal. Top Stories, C-Suite Guests, Listener Q's. The Leading Podcast Reaching Travel Industry Insiders, Frequent Flyers, & Aviation Geeks. Created by & Dedicated to Ben Baldanza.
Siste episoder av Airlines Confidential Podcast podcast
- 306 - Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan, Guest: Pedro Heilbron, CEO, Copa Airlines (01:11:42)
This week: Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan, Guest: Pedro Heilbron, CEO, Copa Airlines; Topics: Top level change at Alaska Airlines; Breeze comes to Norfolk VA; Ramifications of judicial decision on United / American gate reallocation in Chicago; WSJ updates & expands story on toxic fume events; Info on the "Aviation EMBA Program"; A Spirit - AerCap update; JetBlue brings joy to 12 year old boy and family; Listener input on Holly Hegeman interview and the SWA network.
- 305 - Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Holly Hegeman, Founder, PlaneBusiness (01:16:14)
This week: Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Holly Hegeman, Founder, PlaneBusiness. Topics: Job cut warning and cash concerns at Spirit; US tells Delta - Aeroméxico to unwind joint venture; L3 Harris and Frontier Communications cables cause huge Dallas area disruption for American; C.D. McLean, Fmr COO, Continental, passes; "The Ontario Tower Buzzards" will play at ONT Field; Listener input on WSJ article on toxic cabin fumes.
- 304 - Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz, Guest: Nat Pieper, CEO. Oneworld (01:06:45)
This week: Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz, Guest: Nat Pieper, CEO. Oneworld. Topics: Conference season comments; Southwest moves towards introducing premium experiences and international service; Listener Q's on social media impacting Spirit's brand, Southwest O & D saturation and use of RJs.
- 303 - Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt, Guests: Mark Streeter & Jamie Baker, Analysts, JP Morgan Chase (01:09:52)
This week: Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt, Guests: Mark Streeter & Jamie Baker, Analysts, JP Morgan Chase; News: Spirit shrinks; United adds flights in Spirit markets; SWA offers up a freebie; Passenger compensation rules changing; Steven Udvar-Házy retires with sale of Air Lease; International visits to the US down; Listener Q's all center around Spirit.
- 302 - Host Scott McCartney with Guest: Peter Ingram, Fmr CEO, Hawaiian Airlines (01:03:16)
This week: Host Scott McCartney with Guest: Peter Ingram, Fmr CEO, Hawaiian Airlines. Breaking News: What really forced Spirit back into Chapter 11? AerCap claims default triggered; Spirit's poor communication, what markets will see reductions in service, and Frontier Chairman Bill Franke talking with Spirit Chairman Robert Milton and Pres/CEO Dave Davis.
- 301 - Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman (00:55:27)
This week: Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman; Topics: Tribute to Ginger Hardage; Cash management changes at Spirit; Air Canada back to work - who's next? Chris Sununu appointed President & CEO, Airlines for America; Questions from "The Sorting Hat" - Should the government make an investment in Spirit? Why are European low cost carriers doing better than USA counterparts? Will supersonic travel return? How will airlines apply AI? Favorite airport? Coldplay vs Taylor Swift.
- 300 - Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan (01:04:20)
Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan; Southwest writes Mrs McCartney a check, and other recent passenger experiences; Spirit Q2 not good, issues "Going Concern" statement; Relevancy of July airfare price increase; Air Canada flight attendants strike; SWA adds flights in vacation cities, divests renewable fuel, and upgrades their coffee; Listener Q on SWA booking window timing.
- 299 - Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis (00:58:07)
Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis; Topics: Change in the Southwest Airlines boardroom - Gangwal steps down as Chair; National Transportation Safety Board report on American Airlines / U.S. Army Helicopter crash - outrageous errors made; Tariff deal benefits aviation industry; No deal at United; Q2 loss for JetBlue; Listener Q on the future of Middle East airlines, Delta Air Lines' loyalty program value. Next episode #300 on 8/20/25
- 298 - Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Doug Parker - "Unscripted & Unplugged" (01:12:31)
This week: Host Scott McCartney & Guest Co-Host Doug Parker - An "Unplugged" Free For All Discussion. Topics: An overarching look at American, Southwest, growth potential, Both co-hosts answer "The Ben Baldanza Question"; The simplification of pricing and Contract of Carriage; Scott recounts memorable reactions to certain stories.
- 297 - Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz, Guest: Charlie Curreri, PhD, The Center for Aviation Mental Health (01:00:56)
This week: Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz, Guest: Charlie Curreri, PhD, The Center for Aviation Mental Health & Creator "Pilot Wingman". Focus: Pilot Mental Health. Also: Colbert/Late Show cancellation relevance to aviation industry; GBTA survey numbers; Delta & United report positive Q2; Delta creatively swaps engines; Avelo pulls out of CA; Listener input on fuel cutoff switches, and a Q on CEO thought process in current business environment.
- 296 - Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Mike Malik, CMO, Cirium (01:01:36)
This week: Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Mike Malik, CMO, Cirium. News: Air India crash preliminary report released; Delta and others report good news; Bryan Bedford sworn in to head FAA; TSA says to keep your shoes on; Listeners chime in on American's Customer service.
- 295 - Guest Co-Host: Henry Harteveldt; Guest: Heather Garboden, Chief Customer Exp. Ofc., American Airlines (01:07:54)
This week: Guest Co-Host: Henry Harteveldt, Guest: Heather Garboden, Chief Customer Experience Officer, American Airlines, News: Huge holiday week travel reported; Delta deals with 100+ massive rain-related diversions; Multi-year funding for FAA system improvements approved; Alaska orders more from Boeing; Listener Q: Point-point success with legacy vs startups.
- 294 - Guest Co-Host: Maya Leibman; Guest Jay Sorensen, Pres., IdeaWorks Company (00:57:30)
This week: Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman; Guest Jay Sorensen, President, The IdeaWorks Company; News: Bryan Bedford, CEO, Republic Airways, on track for FAA Administrator; Southwest starts assigned seating, Spirit drops the "Go" & renames fares, Delta adds more international flights from Seattle; NTSB issues report on Alaska door plug failure; Air India crash flight recorder found - nothing released yet; Listener Q on United-JetBlue partnership.
- 293 - Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Maury Gallagher, Chairman, Allegiant Travel Company (01:05:49)
This week: Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan; Guest: Maury Gallagher, Chairman, Allegiant Travel Company; News: FedEx Founder Fred Smith passes away at 80; JetBlue says more cost cuts are on the way; ATC understaffing continues; A muted Paris Air Show; National Academy of Sciences reports on FAA overtime; Listener Q regarding airlines taking a stake in other airlines, Pilot availability and wage rates.
- 292 - Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis, CEO, Pittsburgh International Airport (01:06:17)
This week: Guest Co-Host Christina Cassotis; Topics: Info on Air India 171, Crisis Management; A recap of the IATA meeting; Paris Air Show is underway; Listener input on Controller staffing
- 291 - Guest Co-Host: Doug Parker; Guest: Robert Crandall, Fmr CEO/Chairman, American Airlines (01:01:59)
This week: Guest Co-Host Doug Parker; Guest: Robert Crandall, Fmr CEO/Chairman, American Airlines. Topics/News: Reflections on Scott's Richard Anderson interview; Backstory of presenting the renderings for the Robert L. Crandall Campus; Summer travel starting off slightly slower; SAF discussion at IATA in Delhi; Alaska postpones aircraft delivery; Price differentials on single vs multi-ticket.
- 290 - Guests Greg John, CEO Infinity Flight Group; David Seymour, COO, American (00:49:07)
This week: Guests: Greg John, CEO Infinity Flight Group, and an Operational Update from David Seymour, COO, American. News: The United & JetBlue collaboration compared to other partnership agreements; Frontier CEO Barry Biffle comments and airline stock prices rise; FAA staff departures as reported by WSJ reporter Andrew Tangel; Listener praise for Richard Anderson.
- 289 - Guest Co-Host: Oscar Munoz; Guest: Steve Sisneros, VP Airport Affairs, Southwest Airlines (01:02:08)
This week: Scott McCartney's Guest Co-Host is Oscar Munoz; Guest: Steve Sisneros, VP Airport Affairs, Southwest Airlines, News: Real ID kicks in; SWA Bags Fly Free no more; Newark caps traffic - United takes biggest hit; Better ATC tech & better runway utilization; ATC leadership failures; Success pending ratification on United flight attendant contract; Delta's new confusing fare classes & subclasses; Listener Input: Conflicting opinions on EWR slot restrictions.
- 288 - Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Richard Anderson, Fmr CEO, Delta Airlines (01:20:19)
This week: Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Richard Anderson, Fmr CEO, Delta Airlines; News: Airline fares drop; Newark personnel and technology forces contraction; SWA expands international service; United projects getting back into JFK; How might JetBlue benefit from a United alliance?
- 287 - Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt; Guest: Adam Stahl, Acting Administrator, TSA (00:58:39)
This week: Guest Co-Host Henry Hardevelt; Guest: Adam Stahl, Acting Administrator, TSA; News: Real ID takes effect; US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy presents plan for ATC technology upgrade; What's happening at Newark? Gate reallocation drama with United & American in Chicago; Decline in business travel continues; Validity of JD Power survey? Listener input on Real ID, Affordable Skies Coalition.
- 286 - Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman; Guest: Linda Jojo, Fmr EVP/CCO, United (01:02:55)
This week: Scott's Guest Co- Host is Maya Leibman; Guest: Linda Jojo, Fmr EVP/Chief Customer Officer, United. News: Rep. Sam Graves (R) proposes $15B ATC modernization; United cuts flights at Newark due to ATC equipment and staffing issues; Projected United - JetBlue partnership; How problematic will TSA enforcement of Real ID be? New less fun names for SWA fare bundles; A Freddie Awards recap; United & others seat count changes at ORD; Listener Q: Why is AA suing JetBlue, and what happened to JetBlue BOS-ISP?
- 285 - Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis, Guest: John Pepper, VP/Corp. Development, Allegiant Air (01:04:25)
This week: Scott's Guest Co-Host is Christina Cassotis, Guest: John Pepper, VP/Corporate Development, Allegiant Air; News: Why has a proposed Allegiant-Viva Aerobus alliance been held up by DOT for 3 years? Earning news from AA, SWA, Alaska; Southwest assigns very generic names to fare classes; Alaska increasing flights to West Coast cities; Boeing pauses X-66; Jetzero gains more support; Dozens of JetBlue pilots taking buyout; Listener input on pilot training, airport staffing.
- 284 - Guest Co-Host Doug Parker; Guest: Aengus Kelly, Exec. Director & CEO, AerCap Holdings (01:05:28)
This week: Scott's McCartney's Guest Co-Host is Doug Parker; Guest: Aengus Kelly, Exec. Director & CEO, AerCap Holdings: News: United reports positive earnings & offers two different projections; Spirit hires Dave Davis as CEO as speculation builds on a merger with Frontier; American teaming with AT&T to offer free Wi-Fi; Listener Q on potential reason for new administration's toughness on airlines.
- 283 - Guest Co-Host: Dave Hilfman, Special Report: Chris Sloan on the Pacific Island Hopper (01:15:10)
This week: Scott's Guest Co-Host is Dave Hilfman, Special Report: Chris Sloan on the Pacific Island Hopper; News: Frontier, Delta, revenue lower than projected; United adding significant numbers of seats; What's happening with the NOTAM system? FAA still having trouble with technology; Avelo accepts contract to operate deportation flights; Listener Q: Is a Republic - SkyWest merger in the cards?
- 282 - Guest Co-Host: Oscar Munoz, Guests: Milind Tavshikar, SmartKargo & Marco Ferrara, Delta (01:07:43)
Guest Host: Oscar Munoz, Guests: Milind Tavshikar, CEO, SmartKargo & Marco Ferrara, Mngr Product/Strategy, Delta; Ted Christie out as Spirit CEO: Republic buying Mesa; Info on new Executive Aviation focused MBA program at U of Colorado; Airline stocks take another beating; United adding interesting Asian flights; Economic changes potential effects on Southwest; Listener feedback on Southwest, and shades position during boarding and deplaning.