Yesterday, CNN reported that the lone survivor in the Comair flight crash in Lexington, KY regained consciousness. James Polehinke was the co-pilot on that flight and while he may be able to shed light on the subject, his doctors advised family members not to question him on the subject until he is recovered more fully.
When asked if the crash would threaten Comair, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported it likely will not. Despite its purchase in 2000 by Delta, it is still Cincinatti’s hometown carrier, and passengers there at least are familar enough with it to recognize this incident is not indicative of anything wrong there. And outside of Ohio, Comair operates under the Delta banner, and the incident is likely not to blot Delta’s record.
Comair has dealt with a 2001 pilot strike, a major computer malfunction in 2004 during the Christmas season, and now this. Since Comair operates its planes under lease to Delta, and there are several competing companies in that forum, they have to be competitive, or cease to exist. Despite Delta’s ownership of Comair, there is no indication they would not let it go under or sell it like they did their other subsidiary if it means their own survival.
Essentially, if Comair cannot recover from this, negotiate new money-saving contracts with its workers, and submit a competitive bid to Delta to operate flights, it will not survive.