going_places

It is pretty scary right now, I think, with Northwest and the pilots union fighting it out in bankruptcy court. Tthe pilots threaten to strike and then Northwest threatens to liquidate! My hope is that they are playing chicken. I have Europe tickets in March, as I imagine thousands of other people do. It is hard on the public...if Northwest liquidates an awful lot of people and businesses are going to be hurt.

Flyboy

There is a lot of posturing in these matters and the discussions can become heated because of the legitimate interests that people are trying to protect. Liquidation is a very unlikely scenario because nobody wins.

LoveItaly

I hope you are right Flyboy, and no doubt you are. I haven't purchased tickets but sure have FF miles that I planned on using to upgrade to Business Class.

Which brings up a question. I always fly to Italy on KLM. If NW liquidates will I still be able to use my NW FF miles on KLM.

Do you know Flyboy? Thanks.

venusfan

I only worry about the real workers at NW who gets payed nothing compare to the top executives who run the company into chapter 11.

Flyboy

The far more likely outcome would be some kind of merger or acquisition. Whether you would be able to use Northwest miles on KLM would depend on what partnerships the new entity might retain or have existing, as well as the terms. My guess is that Northwest will survive these difficult times in one form or another, but that is MY guess. I wouldn't think twice about a booking in March, however. I think your risk of having a problem with that is very low.

Worktowander

Also booked in March on NWA and not overly worried (unless the flight attendants reach their limit - I think they're more a risk right now than the pilots for a strike.)

Long term? Well that's a puzzle. I wouldn't feel good about booking for <i>next</i> March right now.

going_places

The sad part of this is that both parties have a point. The pilots and flight attendants have given up a lot of pay, and due (I think) to mismanagement, the airline really does need cuts. They supposededly have relacements for flight attendants if they strike, but not pilots. If they strike the airline can't fly.
Oh boy.....

bhuty

we had this happen in Australia and by recollection I believe that the competing airline picked up many of the stranded passengers for very little if not free. Won't this also occur in the US of A?
I just flew with NWA and delta and luckily my insurance would have covered me anyway but besides the planes being very old the service was nice.

rkkwan

bhurty - Let's use the recent example of Indepedence Air.

AA waives advanced purchase requirement, but one still need to buy a ticket.

UA allows DH customers to standby for $50 each way.

CO allows DH customers to standby for $50, or confirmed seat for $100. Each way.

Etc...

So, there's a real risk if your airline shuts down. With the airlines filling like 80% of their seats, getting seats on other airlines aren't that easy either.

tatersalad

Now I'm worried too! We have NWA tickets to Delhi for March 8th., we will be on NWA as far as Amsterdam and then connect to KLM; but the tickets are NWA.

I just today heard on the Minneapolis local news that the pilots may strike Feb. 28. The tv news said that the only obligation the airline has is a refund of the unused part of the ticket. The problem that I see is that a person can't book another airline now because NWA will only refund if there is a strike but if you wait until the strike happens it will be too late to get another flight.

The best hope, at this point (for us), is that the strike gets delayed. It seems that sometimes a court can order a cooling off period (as I recall &quot;Taft-Hartley Act&quot.

If the strike goes forward at any point in time and lasts for more than a few days, like it did in 1998, NWA will be history.

going_places

I think that NW pilots have to file a notice of their intent to strike 30 or 15 days (I am not sure how long...I hope someone here can enlighten me), so the strike can't happen immediately on the 28th. I am in the same boat..I would like to make other arrangments before it is too late, but I can't unless thay actually strike. then of course if they suspend operations, there will be no refund.

tatersalad

going_places:

What the Minneapolis tv news station said is that if the pilots strike; the airline has an obligation to refund the unsued portion of a ticket. Now, I don't know if that is a law or policy but on the other hand if the airline does a belly flop the money may not be there.

I wish I knew for sure, I hope that someone else will respond to this (hopefully with some good news).

It would break my heart if NW goes belly-up as they have my frequent flyer miles and have the best routes from the location I depart. I guess that eventualy someone else will step in to take their place.

rkkwan

MSP often has higher prices to most cities, compared to from Chicago or Milwaukee, where no single airline dominates.

Sure you'll lose some non-stops, and definitely no more 3x daily to Amsterdam or 2x to Tokyo, but prices may come down and you will definitely see more service to other airlines' hubs as a result.

going_places

It will be a great blow to the economy of minnesota if Northwest goes under. they owe the state millions! The airport also invested large amounts of money in expansion to serve northwest. This may not have been wise, but that is hindsight. there are a lot of jobs riding on this, as well as a lot of peoples plans. It is a real shame. A few lower fares won't beging to make up for the losses.