United Airlines lost $542 million in the first quarter. That's according to statement issued this morning by the airline. The loss was "driven primarily by a $618 million increase in consolidated fuel expense..."

Bad news like this is almost becoming old news. What's more noteworthy is what the airline says it's going to do about it; the following bullet points are pulled from the United statement:

• By the fourth quarter of 2008 mainline domestic capacity will be down approximately 9 percent year-over-year. This reduction follows a 5 percent reduction in the fourth quarter of 2007. Consolidated capacity will be approximately 4 percent lower than prior year levels for
  the fourth quarter of 2008.
• The company will permanently remove 30 narrowbody aircraft from its operations, 10 -15 more aircraft than initially announced last month. The aircraft being retired are some of the oldest and least fuel efficient in the company’s fleet.
• The company continues to take actions to pass rising commodity costs to customers. In addition to leading the industry in capacity discipline, United continues to be a leader of fare and fuel surcharge actions. The company is also creating new revenue streams through unbundling products, offering new a la carte services and expanding choices for our customers. The company’s existing merchandising programs,
  such as Economy Plus and Premium Cabin upsell have been extremely successful and the company is following through with initiatives such as the $25 fee for a second checked bag announced in February.
• The company expects to reduce its salaried and management workforce by 500 employees and its represented workforce by approximately 600 employees by year-end.
• The company is also reducing 2008 capital expenditures by approximately $200 million from $650 million in expenditures previously planned. “We continue to focus on cash flow and, with a strong cash balance and more than $3 billion in unencumbered assets, we are well positioned to manage the challenges ahead,” said Jake Brace, EVP and chief financial officer. “We are responsibly reducing our fleet, eliminating less efficient aircraft that are not profitable in this fuel environment.”

From the customer's point-of-view, here's the bottom line: United will reduce service nation wide and ticket prices will go up.

United has grounded its Boeing 777 jets today to inspect fire sepression systems. This will most likely affect fliers on international flights. Read more in the Chicago Tribune.

Blogging again from San Antonio...

We've got a lively discussion going on the blog about the idea of United touching down in Jefferson City, MO as it flies between Springfiled-Branson and Chicago O'Hare. Jeffcitylocal blogs these thoughts:

"The United Airlines flight between Springfield and Chicago that is operated by SkyWest flies right over the Jefferson City area. I would like to know if you think it is possible to create an en-route stop at the Jefferson City Airport? Currently the airport is not certified as a commercial airport and would only need a few upgrades if at all to handle commercial traffic since years ago it was served by a commercial carrier. Having 2-3 arrivals and 2-3 departures would I think is very practical to serve Jefferson City, the Lake Area, Columbia, other communities along the highways 50, 54, and 63 that all interchange next to the Jefferson City Airport . Would you mention this idea to some officials at the Springfield Airport and SkyWest to see if this can happen?"

 Greg doesn't like this idea at all and responds, in part:

"Not trying to sound rude here, but we have few enough flights as it is and I hate having to change planes. I would have zero interest in having to stop in Jeff City en route. On top of that I doubt the airline would want to foot the bill for the extra cost to land and take off from Jeff City.

There's more to this exchange and you can read it here.

Jeffcitylocal...I understand where you're coming from. Essential Air Service is close to blowing the coup in Columbia and every other EAS market in the state. And I don't want to rain on your parade, however...

There's not a snow ball's chance that United will drop by MidMo on its way from Springfield-Branson to Chicago.

Greg mentioned one of the reasons: extra cost. Stopping in Jefferson City would burn a lot more fuel. With oil hovering around a hundred bucks a barrel, all the airlines burn as little fuel as possible. Here are some more reasons: 1) Your proximity to STL Lambert, KC International and the Springfield airport. From the airline's perspective, you just need to drive to one of those airports. 2) We (the Springfield airport) estimate average United load factors (percentage of sold seats) on the Springfield-Chicago route at more than 70 percent. That's on both 50 and 70 seat regional jets. I'd guess that the airline would have to charge hefty MidMo fares to make a Jeff City drop by worth its while. It would certainly be a lot more than the subsidized EAS fares out of Columbia. Would you be willing to pay them? 3) Stopping in MidMo would mandate bumping the arrival slots at O'Hare at least an hour later. Other United slots would have be be juggled to accommodate. That's not an easy thing to do at one of the most congested airports in the country. I could go on, but you get the idea.

I hope some of you can chuckle with me when you note the differences in how jeffcitylocal and Greg perceive the Springfield air market. People in MidMo would kill for our service. For Greg, Springfield "has few enough flights as it is." That's my lot in life...I can't please anybody!