11-11-2008
04:57 PM
3 Loves
Responding to, "Don't fly code-share flights! fly JetBlue, Frontier, Continental, AA, United, Spirit, Airtran, Delta and all the other American carriers that will take you to Mexico and Canada on THEIR OWN metal and will be held accountable in case something goes wrong!"
Are you kidding me? Do you really think that a Canadian carrier won't be held accountable? Better yet, do you really think that a Canadian carrier won't hold itself accountable? Give your head a shake. Do you know anything about Canada, Canadian standards, Canadian regulations? Here's a crash course: meets or exceeds any US standard. By the way, since clearly there are experts in this blog that have failed to identify this so far: When you fly international you are governed by rules set forth under the Montreal Convention. Canada has signed it, the US has signed it. That means the air carrier under the signatory countries will follow those same rules so long as both countries have signed it. None of the codeshare and transborder flight 'experts' have identified that yet. Also, if you fly United Airlines to Canada, you have a really good chance of actually flying on Air Canada metal. That's called Star Alliance. Again, a simple oversight during the fear mongering...
Further, codeshare does not just take Southwest passengers and funnel them to a Canadian carrier, it goes the other way too--Canadians accustomed to a high level of service that will feel very different once boarding their Southwest flight in the US are going to be coming to you from Westjet. Westjet customers! Treat them well! Reading this blog makes me fearful for them.
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11-11-2008
01:07 AM
1 Love
Wow, I find it hard to believe some of the rhetoric I've read about outsourcing. Say what you will about Volaris, I only heard about them for the first time today while reading this announcment, but don't even think about trying to brand codeshare with Westjet as outsourcing or thinking of them as some second level operation not worthy of partnering with Southwest. Fact is, WestJet does it very well, probably even better than Southwest. Yes, they took a model that Southwest created and perfected it to another level. And there are some who are very worried about Canadian customers boarding a flight in Canada connecting in the US and suddenly being herded like cattle the Southwest way. The Southwest model, in its purity, would not be tolerated by most Canadian travellers and thats why Westjet had to modify it. Codeshare is a great way to gain exposure in a different country without the risk and complication of regulations, Customs, and cultural expectations. Westjet flies to the US, the Carribean and Mexico. Southwest does not need to worry about its brand when partnering with Westjet. That's a solid partnership. Seperate the Volaris announcement from the Westjet announcment. It's like NAFTA. That sucking sound you hear going south started in the north. Mexico is to the US as the US is to Canada regarding job loss and outsourcing. Once you get that you'll realize how absurd outsourcing claims to Canada really is.
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