Paul Allen on 60 Minutes tonight

[mlenoch]

I wish to counter that remark about Frank.
He did not run that airline into the ground.
Ask any former Eastern pilot who really pulled the plug.
VL

[The Inspector]

He was the last holdout against female cabin staffing at least domestically (unsure about Pan Am).

[JohnB]

Don't blame Borman.
Most observers blame Frank Lorenzo for eastern's failure...from Time, March 20, 1989.

"Since he took over Eastern in 1986, the pilots charged, Lorenzo has systematically stripped the airline of its most valuable assets, leaving it too small and weak to compete.
Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... z1K5Wt36JE

BTW: I met Frank and his wife twice at a Dyess AFB open house. He flew his Mustang in from NM. His gracious wife, Susan, rode in the back seat. Neither were young and I was amazed that this sane and classy woman would subject herself to a long flight that no matter how exciting, probably wasn't the most comfortable seat in aviation.
My favorite example of spousal support and trust. (My wife wouldn't fly with me if her life depended on it...then again, I'm no astronaut).
Great people, among the nicest warbird folks I've met.

Last edited by JohnB on Wed Apr 20, 2011 7:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[mlenoch]

At the time, Lorenzo was tremendously despised. I am amazed he did not suffer physical harm.
(I have 2 antique airlines suits for sale. And, unfortunately, they do not fit anymore. HA!!)
VL

[The Inspector]

Despised!?! On a really good day Lorenzo was only despised. He ran TTA (Tree Top Airlines) into the ground (and Trans Texas was a pretty nice friendly almost family air carrier), nearly killed CONTINENTAL, and managed to poison relations within EAL to the point that the IAMAW Union (mechanics) struck themselves out of a job to land blows against him. I worked with a couple of guys who both had over 20 with EAL one @ JFK and one @ MIA, and were pretty close to pensions when it rolled over and sank. Now every quarter they get what one of them catagorized as 'ten pounds of processed trees' from the bankruptcy lawyers (who get their money!) telling them that the guy who supplied toilet paper to the airline came first ahead of the former employees when it comes time to divvy up a nickle, so NO PENSION FOR YOU!. I also had former co-worker friends who left to go break the strike @ EAL and now are on 'the jungle telegraph' and have a very hard time getting mechanic jobs outside of Gen Av.
Towards the end I'm told, people went through the Records Department and stores @ MIA and selectively so as to really mess things up, threw out, by the armsfull, certs and cert tags and records on everything from small rotables to entire airplanes, and then threw everything else on the floor. So Borman showed up to work in a mine field wearing snow shoes.

[mlenoch]

Agreed. I am amazed he even exists.
Many-many were so severely hurt. Very bad.
VL