John,
Here's a few reasons NOT to like Airline Stocks
1) Pan Am
2) Eastern
3) National ( which merged with the defunct Pan Am )
4) TWA ( Trans World )- which went bankrupt in 1995, had the Flight 800 incident and was absorbed into AA in 2001 )
5) Braniff International
6) The one that the O2 bottles blew up in the Cargo Bay and crashed & is now called AirTran after being Reorganized in Bankruptcy and getting a name change.
7) ETC ad infinitum

I remember the 1st time that American AirLines went Bamkrupt - I learned a NEW Word - D.I.P. - 'Debtor in Possession' Financing - the couurts allowed old debt to be set aside so they could borrow more to stay in business.

Airlines by-and-large don't actually own AIRplanes - they lease them. Their assets are luggage "trains", ramps, fuel handling and storage equipment, De-icing equipment, and Gate Rights.They have even sold their reservation Systems ( like United's Sabre System ) - Independent Travel Agents do the 'Heavy' Lifting.

I remember "Air Mail" in the days of standard mail being ground shipped by trains and trucks. Air Mail stamps cost a lot more than Regular stamps. The Government "SUBSIDIZED" the AirLines Big-Time with mail carrying contracts. Loocal Governments also build and maintain the AirPorts at great Tax-Payer Expense. That's the "Hidden" cost that subsidizes air traffic.

Here is TRUTH - I saw an accounting of AirLine Profits & Losses since the beginning of passenger air travel AND ( drum roll, Please ) - Net, net the airline industry has never actually made a DIME - the P & L statement for the industry was a DEFICIT !!!

That's why people, in general, stay away from AirLine Stocks.

Don L. Ferk

I wish you well at your airline company and really do hope that things go well for you.

Reasons I avoid airlines? Unions, gas prices, competition from fly by night start ups to name a few. What's keeping the major mergers from happening? The piots union cannot figure out a senority ranking? Is this really important to the business? Reminds me of the big three automakers where the unions basically ruined them by pricing them out of the market due to high labor costs. Certainly management had a big hand in this case as well and cannot be forgiven either. They didn't realize Americans were willing to vote with their dollars on the best product, not the best product "made in the USA."

But, if I had to quote someone on this topic, it would be Jeff Macke from Fast Money. "You know when it's a good time to sell airline stocks? When the market is open!"

That is not to say money cannot be made in airline stocks. It's just too hard to figure out how they make money for most of us (well, OK, at least me.)

Good luck,
Uncle John

John,
I'd like to revise & extend my comments.
Please add Frontier Airlines to 'The List' and
give more of a Special " Shout DOWN " to American Airlines.
I think you could restructure the airlines by clipping their Wings and merging them with TrailWays ( Oops ! I forgot about GreyHound )- a private Franchisee - that'll get the AirLine Scuttlebutt out of the Market News.

Don L. Ferk ( fka VikingWarrior )

PS : Many years ago I ate at a restaurant in the Fat City section of New Orleans - it was a converted AirLiner. Maybe the Airlines could get into the Food Service & Hospitality Industry, that would, at least reduce the traffic jams they would cause operating as GROUNDbuses.

Yet another reason not to like airlines stocks -- teleconferencing, Internet conferencing and video conferencing are still increasing and becoming more sophisticated. Even if the price of fuel drops there will be less and less reason for business travel. I forsee airlines continuing to shrink. The exception to this may be in developing countries where their growing economies will need more transportation of all kinds.