WSJ.com - SAS May Cancel Routes, Cut Jobs After Review Of Airline Operations

Airline discount fares in America are changing business world wide. The big US carriers, such as AMR and CAL, have had to cut labor costs to compete with LUV. In doing so, AMR and CAL now have lower operating cost than other international carriers. SAS, Scandinavian Airlines in Sweden, is feeling the pressure.

CAL will increase international flights another 15% in 2006. It is neat to own shares in an expanding company and then to see competitors cutting back capacity. The DAL pilots have until noon today to approve temporary pay cuts. Should they fail to do so, DAL will seek court permission to impose permanent pay cuts.

After the cuts, the pilots will make $168,000 per year on average. It is difficult for most travelers to feel sympathetic to their plight. On the other hand, travelers are enjoying seeing amenities coming back. Airlines are gradually adding back perks that were taken away during the crunch of the past 5 years.