United CEO Scott Kirby sat down with the New York Times and covered a wealth tax, flying private, middle seat pricing, and how being fired by American felt like betrayal.
"Management and leadership are two different things"
He sounds crazy until you take the time to listen and evaluate where he's going with these thoughts. I love that he's comfortable in his own skin.
Kirby needs desperately for everyone to believe - despite the fact that it is not true - that he is the smartest person in the room and the only way he can keep that narrative going is to keep talking.
It simply does not cost more to produce a middle seat than an aisle or window. It is certainly preferable to not sit in a middle seat if you are traveling alone but it is a not a cost issue.
and Kirby is increasingly fighting the reality that all of the aggressive decisions he made - esp. growth - do not work in the current high fuel cost environment where UA pays more for fuel than any of the big 4.
and UA might have done more to transform UA than any other airline over the past decade but I am quite sure that WN will go through a far bigger transformation over the next decade than UA has done over the past decade.
@ Tim Dunn -- "It simply does not cost more to produce a middle seat than an aisle or window. It is certainly preferable to not sit in a middle seat if you are traveling alone but it is a not a cost issue."
Does it cost more to "produce" a seat with standard economy legroom toward the front of the plane vs. the back of the plane? All major US carriers charge more for standard economy seats toward the front of the cabin.
Airfare pricing is never about the cost of producing a product, it's about how much people are willing to pay for the experience, so that the airline can afford to sell most tickets at a loss, and some at a profit.
Sounds like Kirby might run for President