Scott McCartney

Airlines Confidential Podcast

Business EN ↓ 344 episodes

Hosted by Scott McCartney, Fmr. Travel Editor/"Middle Seat" Columnist for The Wall Street Journal. Top Stories, C-Suite Guests, Listener Q's. The Leading Podcast Reaching Travel Industry Insiders, Frequent Flyers, & Aviation Geeks. Created by & Dedicated to Ben Baldanza.

Author

Scott McCartney

Category

Business

Latest episode

Jul 1, 2026

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Episodes

294 - Guest Co-Host: Maya Leibman; Guest Jay Sorensen, Pres., IdeaWorks Company 02.07.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman; Guest Jay Sorensen, President, The IdeaWorks Company; News: Bryan Bedford, CEO, Republic Airways, on track for FAA Administrator; Southwest starts assigned seating, Spirit drops the "Go" & renames fares, Delta adds more international flights from Seattle; NTSB issues report on Alaska door plug failure; Air India crash flight recorder found - nothing released...

293 - Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Maury Gallagher, Chairman, Allegiant Travel Company 25.06.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan; Guest: Maury Gallagher, Chairman, Allegiant Travel Company; News: FedEx Founder Fred Smith passes away at 80; JetBlue says more cost cuts are on the way; ATC understaffing continues; A muted Paris Air Show; National Academy of Sciences reports on FAA overtime; Listener Q regarding airlines taking a stake in other airlines, Pilot availability and wage rates.

292 - Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis, CEO, Pittsburgh International Airport 18.06.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Christina Cassotis; Topics: Info on Air India 171, Crisis Management; A recap of the IATA meeting; Paris Air Show is underway; Listener input on Controller staffing

291 - Guest Co-Host: Doug Parker; Guest: Robert Crandall, Fmr CEO/Chairman, American Airlines 11.06.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Doug Parker; Guest: Robert Crandall, Fmr CEO/Chairman, American Airlines. Topics/News: Reflections on Scott's Richard Anderson interview; Backstory of presenting the renderings for the Robert L. Crandall Campus; Summer travel starting off slightly slower; SAF discussion at IATA in Delhi; Alaska postpones aircraft delivery; Price differentials on single vs multi-ticket.

290 - Guests Greg John, CEO Infinity Flight Group; David Seymour, COO, American 04.06.2025

This week: Guests: Greg John, CEO Infinity Flight Group, and an Operational Update from David Seymour, COO, American. News: The United & JetBlue collaboration compared to other partnership agreements; Frontier CEO Barry Biffle comments and airline stock prices rise; FAA staff departures as reported by WSJ reporter Andrew Tangel; Listener praise for Richard Anderson.

289 - Guest Co-Host: Oscar Munoz; Guest: Steve Sisneros, VP Airport Affairs, Southwest Airlines 28.05.2025

This week: Scott McCartney's Guest Co-Host is Oscar Munoz; Guest: Steve Sisneros, VP Airport Affairs, Southwest Airlines, News: Real ID kicks in; SWA Bags Fly Free no more; Newark caps traffic - United takes biggest hit; Better ATC tech & better runway utilization; ATC leadership failures; Success pending ratification on United flight attendant contract; Delta's new confusing fare classes & subcla...

288 - Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Richard Anderson, Fmr CEO, Delta Airlines 21.05.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host: Charles Duncan; Guest: Richard Anderson, Fmr CEO, Delta Airlines; News: Airline fares drop; Newark personnel and technology forces contraction; SWA expands international service; United projects getting back into JFK; How might JetBlue benefit from a United alliance?

287 - Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt; Guest: Adam Stahl, Acting Administrator, TSA 14.05.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Henry Hardevelt; Guest: Adam Stahl, Acting Administrator, TSA; News: Real ID takes effect; US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy presents plan for ATC technology upgrade; What's happening at Newark? Gate reallocation drama with United & American in Chicago; Decline in business travel continues; Validity of JD Power survey? Listener input on Real ID, Affordable Skies Coali...

286 - Guest Co-Host Maya Leibman; Guest: Linda Jojo, Fmr EVP/CCO, United 07.05.2025

This week: Scott's Guest Co- Host is Maya Leibman; Guest: Linda Jojo, Fmr EVP/Chief Customer Officer, United. News: Rep. Sam Graves (R) proposes $15B ATC modernization; United cuts flights at Newark due to ATC equipment and staffing issues; Projected United - JetBlue partnership; How problematic will TSA enforcement of Real ID be? New less fun names for SWA fare bundles; A Freddie Awards recap; Un...

285 - Guest Co-Host: Christina Cassotis, Guest: John Pepper, VP/Corp. Development, Allegiant Air 30.04.2025

This week: Scott's Guest Co-Host is Christina Cassotis, Guest: John Pepper, VP/Corporate Development, Allegiant Air; News: Why has a proposed Allegiant-Viva Aerobus alliance been held up by DOT for 3 years? Earning news from AA, SWA, Alaska; Southwest assigns very generic names to fare classes; Alaska increasing flights to West Coast cities; Boeing pauses X-66; Jetzero gains more support; Dozens o...

284 - Guest Co-Host Doug Parker; Guest: Aengus Kelly, Exec. Director & CEO, AerCap Holdings 23.04.2025

This week: Scott's McCartney's Guest Co-Host is Doug Parker; Guest: Aengus Kelly, Exec. Director & CEO, AerCap Holdings: News: United reports positive earnings & offers two different projections; Spirit hires Dave Davis as CEO as speculation builds on a merger with Frontier; American teaming with AT&T to offer free Wi-Fi; Listener Q on potential reason for new administration's toughness on airline...

283 - Guest Co-Host: Dave Hilfman, Special Report: Chris Sloan on the Pacific Island Hopper 16.04.2025

This week: Scott's Guest Co-Host is Dave Hilfman, Special Report: Chris Sloan on the Pacific Island Hopper; News: Frontier, Delta, revenue lower than projected; United adding significant numbers of seats; What's happening with the NOTAM system? FAA still having trouble with technology; Avelo accepts contract to operate deportation flights; Listener Q: Is a Republic - SkyWest merger in the cards?

282 - Guest Co-Host: Oscar Munoz, Guests: Milind Tavshikar, SmartKargo & Marco Ferrara, Delta 08.04.2025

Guest Host: Oscar Munoz, Guests: Milind Tavshikar, CEO, SmartKargo & Marco Ferrara, Mngr Product/Strategy, Delta; Ted Christie out as Spirit CEO: Republic buying Mesa; Info on new Executive Aviation focused MBA program at U of Colorado; Airline stocks take another beating; United adding interesting Asian flights; Economic changes potential effects on Southwest; Listener feedback on Southwest, and...

281 - Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan; Guest: Eamonn Brennan, Fmr Director General, Eurocontrol 02.04.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan; Guest: Eamonn Brennan, Fmr Director General, Eurocontrol; News: Trans Canada booking data conflicts; Potential market share shifts related to fees; Alaska/Hawaiian increasing Asian service from Seattle; Listener input: Lots about SWA, but not much about JetBlue's situation, YTD stock prices, and future pilots getting hours as a CFI.

280 - Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt; Guest: Justin Jones, EVP Operations, Southwest Airlines 26.03.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt; Guest: Justin Jones, EVP Operations, Southwest Airlines. Recorded in Dallas TX at Cirium OTP Board Meeting; News: Heathrow power failure; International travel slowdown; Report issued on Delta CRJ incident; Republic Airways CEO Bryan Bedford nominated to head FAA; SWA earns world's lowest cancellation rate; Could the SWA bag rule change be problematic? Lis...

279 - Guest Co-Host: Maya Leibman; Guest: Elise Eberwein, Fmr EVP, American Airlines 19.03.2025

This week: Scott's Co-Host is Maya Leibman; Guest: Elise Eberwein, Fmr EVP, American Airlines; News: Crisis communication; Delta celebrates 100 Years; Revised earnings projections from United, Delta; The SWA transition; Spirit's quick exit from bankruptcy; Listener Q's on airlines deferring OEM deliveries.

278 - Big Southwest Bag/Policy Changes - Guest Co-Host Christina Cassotis 11.03.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Christina Cassotis; News: Big bag news & changes at Southwest; Can SWA remain SWA? Cost of enplaned passenger (CPE) & the structure around airport funding; AA asks for a NE Alliance deal review; Staffing requirement change at DCA; A Scott Mini-Rant on Axios fare data conclusion; Listener Q on the future of SWA, & a look ahead to Southwest 3.0.

277 - JetBlue's Top Senior Leadership - Joanna Geraghty, CEO and Marty St. George, President 03.03.2025

This week: JetBlue's Top Senior Leadership - Joanna Geraghty, CEO and Marty St. George, President. News: The SWA go-around to avoid Flexjet in Chicago; SWA routes and distribution changes; Frontier makes significant moves in Atlanta; A rant from Scott; Some very much appreciated listener input.

276 - Guest Co-Host Doug Parker; Guest: Sara Nelson, Pres., Association of Flight Attendants 26.02.2025

This week: Scott's Guest Co-Host is Doug Parker; Guest: Sara Nelson, President, Association of Flight Attendants; Topics: Organized labor, Partners and mergers, Delta 4819 flight lands, flips upside down, crew performs with excellence, all survive; A drop in government travel, A4A seeks congressional funding to fix the FAA; Spirit restructuring deal approved; AA announces routes expansion at ORD.

275 - Guest Co-Host Chris Sloan with info on BermudAir 19.02.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Chris Sloan with info on BermudAir; Several see Spirit as attractive; British Airways & Virgin participate in love triangle; Las Vegas "Supplemental" Airport in the works; American adds to BOS-LGA; Tom Doxey to Southwest as CFO; DCA incident news update; Boeing steps up deliveries; Listener comments on open skies in the new administration, post DCA crash reactions. Next we...

274 - Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Jim Compton, Fmr Vice Chairman, United 12.02.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Dave Hilfman, Guest: Jim Compton, Fmr Vice Chairman/Chief Revenue Officer of United Airlines. Topics: Pricing: Favorite Superbowl ads; United brings back stroopwafels; PSA 5342/PAT 25 Crash info update; JetBlue ending BOS-LGA service; United asking for American gates in ORD? Frontier reports interesting numbers.

273 - Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz; Focus: A Tragic Week in Aviation 05.02.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Oscar Munoz; News: A tragic week in aviation; Context and elements to consider; Frontier (again) tries to buy Spirit; Is the American-JetBlue Northeast Alliance back on the table? Listener input on Spirit's attempt at upgraded services, plus differing thoughts on the work of the TSA and Fmr Admin David Pekoske.

272 - Scott McCartney - Island Edition from Hawaii 29.01.2025

This week: Scott McCartney - Island Edition from Hawaii; News: David Pekoske out as TSA Administrator; American reports good times-bad times; Operating margin numbers; Wall Street Journal's latest performance rankings; On Point Loyalty's report on loyalty program values; Lister comments: Comparing AOPA to NRA goes to far.

271 - Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt, Travel Industry Analyst 22.01.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Henry Harteveldt; SWA rejects outgoing DOT "chronically late" fine, DOT sues SWA; Service increase coming to TLV; A Delta - United near collision over PHX; Spirit announces layoffs; Can GoBig/GoComfy upsells drive significant revenue? AMEX GBT / CWT merger challenged by US Dept of Justice; Azul Abra/Avianca looking to merge; Nick Calio retiring from A4A; Air Wisconsin chan...

270 - Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan 15.01.2025

This week: Guest Co-Host Charles Duncan, Fmr President, Norse Atlantic; News: Tough week for air travel; Questions around wheel well stowaways; Ed Bastian's Sphere presentation & numbers behind Delta's earnings report; Overall capacity changes taking hold; Bill Swellbar report referenced; Bob Jordan's 737 store open for business; Fmr Boeing CEO says time to design a new airplane; Listener Q's on s...

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