Adios eos
Monday, April 28th, 2008Dick Evans and I would often talk about this and frankly, I can’t believe that eos Airlines made it as long as they did. I could never understand why frequent business travelers would pass on airlines like BA, Lufthansa, Air France and others in place of eos, Maxjet, Silverjet and L’Avion. I could not comprehend why a business class passenger would take their $6,000 ticket price and turn it over to an airline that did not offer connectivity to other destinations in Europe and the world.I thought that the network, the maintenance, the frequent flyer program and alliances would never allow these carriers to make it. I was wrong, for in the end, travelers did flock to these airlines, but it was the high price of fuel that did them in.
I flew eos just a few months ago - the service was great, the seat was very comfortable and the food was very good too. We were escorted through JFK security with an eos employee and we were chatting about how Maxjet had left employees, flight attendants and passengers stranded in the UK when they went belly up this past Christmas Eve.
Now that BA is entering the game with an all business class flight, will there be a need for these carriers? One wonders. It is difficult times out there for airlines, losses are staggering and the only answer seems to be to pass this cost onto the customer.
We all have been paying more at the pump, $45 to $50++ to fill the tank - costs have not remained constant for driving, shipping and other industries. It seems that the only way we are going to see improved airlines and service is for realistic pricing or surcharges.
-Fran Gallagher, publisher and CEO
