Sorry for the delay in responding. Airport gate allocations, lease arrangements, and utilization are complex and vary widely. Three basic deals are airline exclusive leases, airline preferential uses, and common use with assignment by airport. There are multiple differences even within these three categories. Without trying to get into all the details, I doubt you will find airlines having a spare gate just in case they might need it during irregular operations. The trend has been for airports wanting more control of gate assignments and away from airline exclusive gates. Of course, I have been retired for over 20 years, so there may be exceptions of which I am not aware.
Cliff Argue On Mon, Feb 23, 2026 at 1:09 PM ATHGroup--- via Mifnet < [email protected]> wrote: > Carl, > > > > Given the different silos, I believe that only a real person can bring > this all together. > > > > Of course, AI would be very helpful, but this is not a data problem. The > airline’s inaction on working towards “*day of*” Operational Excellence > is a huge people problem. > > > > The airline operational managers are still working from their no longer > valid, outdated 1980s assumptions. > > > > AI won’t fix this, but a strong leader with the right vision could. > > > > Michael > > xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > R. Michael Baiada > > cell - (303) 521-6047 > > [email protected] > > > > *From:* Carl Stork <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Sunday, February 22, 2026 17:41 > *To:* [email protected] > *Cc:* [email protected] > *Subject:* RE: [Mifnet 🛰 75507] Re: Cliff Argue gate question > > > > The Airline VP of Productions sounds like a job that should be tailor made > for AI. > > > > There are a ton of disparate date inputs to be considered and a broad set > of historical data. It’s hard to do in today’s world because there are all > these silos. People with narrow job definitions like trying to get planes > out on time. Or scheduling staff. Or managing ground operations. Or > worrying about weather. Most of these people do their jobs well. But if you > ask them to starting worrying about more and more factors, it becomes > overwhelming. That is where AI compute power can do a better job. Let’s not > push those planes until the inbound with an open gate gets to the gate. Or > have that plane cruise slower because there won’t be a gate – that’s really > a question for an AI. > > > > *From:* ATHGroup--- via Mifnet <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Sunday, February 22, 2026 6:24 PM > *To:* [email protected] > *Cc:* [email protected] > *Subject:* [Mifnet 🛰 75507] Re: Cliff Argue gate question > > > > Randy, > > > > Therein lies the $100 Billion question, which is what airlines and > passengers lose each and every year for the airline’s current “*day of*” > Operational Dismality. > > > > Airlines are clearly trapped in their clearly outdated, 1980s, “*woe is > me*”, “*it’s not my fault*”, “*ATC is going to fix delays*” mentality. > > > > As airline executives have told me, “*there is nothing we can do*”, “*their > airline is not ready for “day of” Operational Excellence*“, “*without FAA > running ... the system, there isn't enough that airlines can do*”, “*why > should my airline pay for what FAA is going to fix anyway*”. > > > > Wanting to improve and waiting for someone else to improve are two > different things. I think airlines suffer from both. > > > > As to wanting improvement, some airlines don’t want it because it would > increase competition because it would free up capacity, landing slots and > gates. > > > > Let’s face it, it is easier to blame ATC, than for an airline to actually > take responsibility for the aircraft and customers. > > > > Of course, the above statements are all flat wrong, but airline executives > are too busy doing “*important stuff*” to pay attention to their “*day of*” > operation. I even asked one COO to fly with me in the jumpseat for a day so > I could point out all of the internal actions his airline could take to > improve “*day of*” operational quality. I was refused. > > > > Yet I did have one COO tell me that what I proposed made perfect sense but > then proceeded to do nothing. > > > > And how has all these excuses and inaction worked out over the last 50 > years? > > > > To make things even worse, no airline has a VP of Production responsible > for putting their passengers where promised, when promised. Of course, the > answer is they don’t need a VP since everyone at the airline is responsible > to put their passengers where promised, when promised. > > > > Interestingly, 20 years ago, I sent an airline my resume for the new > position of VP of Production. Below is the job description. > > > > *Airline Vice President of Production* > > *Job Description* > > > > Front line, "*day of*" production manager with cross departmental > authority, responsibility and control, to ensure that the passenger is > delivered where promised, when promised, i.e., destination curb, on time, > bag in hand, smile on their face, faster, better and more profitably day > after day, flight after flight. Faster, better and more profitably today > than yesterday and faster, better and more profitably tomorrow than today. > > > > Lead small team of 5 "*day of*" operational experts (agent, mechanic, > ramp, flight attendant and pilot). > > > > *Three year Airline Operational Excellence goals* > > - 8 minute average block time reduction (largest constraint to system > throughput and productivity) > - 4 minute average gate time reduction > - >%5 CO2 reduction > - >85% A0 > - <3% day to day A0 Standard Deviation > - 75% intent to repurchase > - Competitive advantage based on recognition as world's best airline > > > > Successful companies across numerous industries (Toyota, Dell, Wal-Mart, > etc.), share one thing in common - Operational Excellence. At their core, > these companies execute better than their competitors, day after day. > > > > Bringing that same internal, corporate dedication to an airline operation > to have the right part at the right place at the right time will > significantly improve the airline's quality, productivity, bottom line and > sustainability. > > > > To rapid accomplish this, an airline requires a single point of > responsibility - Vice President of Production. > > > > Michael > > xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > R. Michael Baiada > > cell - (303) 521-6047 > > [email protected] > > > > *From:* randy essell via Mifnet <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Sunday, February 22, 2026 15:30 > *To:* [email protected] > *Cc:* randy essell <[email protected]> > *Subject:* [Mifnet 🛰 75502] Re: Cliff Argue gate question > > > > As the guy who in the dark ages of the 1990s and 2000s was responsible for > producing the AA schedule, I have a few comments to the notes sent, which I > will provide later. But Michael, why do you believe airlines simply have > no interest in improving ‘ day of’ operations? Falling short, no doubt. > Not the sharpest tools in the shed, perhaps. Not buying the tools you > suggest, could be. But I don’t buy that they don’t *want* to improve. Am > I wrong? > > > > Randy Essell > > > > On Feb 22, 2026, at 4:59 PM, ATHGroup--- via Mifnet < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > > Jack, > > > > The airlines already have it in their power to manage the “*day of*” > movement of their aircraft in real time to resolve this, but refuse. In > fact, airlines have had the power to fix this for decades as independently > validated by FAA, Embry-Riddle University (Vitaly Guzhva, 386-212-4609, > [email protected]), GE Aviation, Georgia Tech, Delta Air Lines and > others. GreenLandings? is also supported by the Port Authority of New and > New Jersey (Ralph Tamburro, 917-828-7741, [email protected]). > > > > I can easily show any interested airline how to retake control over the > movement of their aircraft to prevent most delays, as well as gate holdouts. > > > > It is like what we discussed when we had lunch a couple of years ago, FAA > has no concept of the problem, so how could they fix this. > > > > As I have said, this can only be fixed internally by each airline. Not by > ATC, not by FAA/Eurocontrol, not by more regulations, not by adjusting > schedules, not with capacity limitations, not by a focus on D0, not by > airports and not by labor. > > > > Further, ATC regulation and ATC are already in charge are, which has not > worked out well. ATC has no concept of the business needs of each aircraft > (schedules, connections, gate availability, crew legality, fuel, ramp > congestion, maintenance, etc.), and never should. > > > > Airlines have all the data, computational power, communication capability, > etc. to dramatically improve their “*day of*” operation but simply have > no interest. > > > > Finally, we already have a Future Uniform Cohesive Knowledge Utilizing > Planning solution - DOT’s Brand New ATC System. > > > > Michael > > xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > R. Michael Baiada > > cell - (303) 521-6047 > > [email protected] > > > > *From:* Jack Keady via Mifnet <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Sunday, February 22, 2026 13:48 > *To:* ATHGroup--- via Mifnet <[email protected]>; Mifnet Mifnet < > [email protected]> > *Cc:* Jack Keady <[email protected]> > *Subject:* [Mifnet 🛰 75495] Re: FW: Cliff Argue gate question > > > > Mike - I'm focusing on your example of an inbound seeing an empty gate but > being unable to reach it due to five outbound pushes. And we know this > happens all the time. > > > > What would be a solution to this? > > > > One thing would be to regulate airlines as to minimizing these situations. > Have them report instances of waiting for a gate inbound or outbound > congestion due to "company" traffic, not ATC > > > > Another way would be for the ATC to take charge. Have them track every > idle minute an aircraft is waiting while ATC could clear them to either > threshold or gate > > > > Finally, this whole issue could be turned over to AI. A company i am > hoping to get funding for would review an airports schedule every morning > and measure the million or more eventualities and then issue an entire > schematic for the whole day. > > > > This new company for which I am launching and seeking funding for will be > named Future Uniform Cohesive Knowledge Utilizing Planning. Please do not > try and create an acronym. > > > > > > j keady - founder and nutjob > > > > > > > > > > On Sunday, February 22, 2026 at 12:48:36 PM PST, ATHGroup--- via Mifnet < > [email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > Jack, > > > > Having flown into and out of ORD over and over again, most of the gate > holds are driven by the gross inefficient use of the available gates and > much less so by actual gate availability or ATC actions. > > > > For example, why fly fast enroute if your gate is not available? Yet > airlines do this all the time. Not only does this waste fuel enroute, but > it also congests the terminal airspace, delays other aircraft increases > noise, takes up a valuable landing slot which should be used by a late > aircraft, congests the ramp, and - as proven by ATH Group - leads to > increased taxi times while early flights wait for their gate. > > > > Further, the airline has ramp workers, fuelers, and other secondary > processes “standing by,” wasting time, and costing money. One action > produces lower quality with numerous highly variant and costly effects. > > > > Yet airlines do nothing. > > > > Nothing academic here - just well-understood supply chain and defect > prevention tools from a system perspective. > > > > Although not a common occurrence, the example below happens over and over > again on a much smaller scale. Gate availability problems are easily > predictable hours prior to landing, yet the airline’s only response is to > change gates. In fact, I had one gate management team tell me that they > were so proud that they were able to do 1,000 gate changes in one day. Can > you say Defect Correction? > > > > On my flight from Portland, OR (PDX) to Chicago (ORD). That day, the > tailwinds were in excess of 180 knots, which would and my flight into ORD > 30 to 40 minutes early. > > > > Of course, the PDX agents wanted to shut the door 10 minutes early and > “push” the aircraft to ORD, since everyone was on board the aircraft (local > goal of “shutting the door” early to meet an “on time departure” or D0), > which I prevented, and we left on time. > > > > Next, I taxied very slowly, and cruised at a low speed for better fuel > mileage, to the point ATC asked why I was flying so slowly. Apparently, the > controller had never had an A320 cruising at .715 Mach. When I arrived at > ORD, I landed 16 minutes prior to schedule, instead of 30 to 40 minutes > like all the other arriving aircraft which were “pushed” off their > departure gates to meet D0 and wasted fuel going normal speed. > > > > Of course, when so many aircraft land 30 to 40 minutes early at a hub > airport, the gates are still full from the previous arrival bank. This > forces ATC to temporarily park and manage aircraft everywhere and anywhere > they can, to the point that - as I exited the runway - I couldn't talk with > ATC as they were completely overloaded with D0 “pushed” aircraft parked > everywhere waiting for their gate. After a few minutes, I was able to break > in on the radio, and received clearance to my gate, which was open. As I > entered the alley, yes, my gate was open, but it was blocked by five other > aircraft that had just left their gates, which were awaiting taxi clearance > to depart. > > > > The end result was that ORD devolved into a classic gridlock situation > between the departures and D0 forced early arrivals, as the ATC system and > airport were completely overwhelmed. I sat for 20 minutes looking at my > empty gate 200 yards ahead but couldn't get to it. Of course, like everyone > else who landed 30 to 40 minutes early, I was late to the gate (20 > minutes), even though I landed 16 minutes early. > > > > Could ATC and the airport have handled this better? Of course! But the > real solution was for the airlines to manage their departures by “pulling” > the right aircraft from their departure gates to not overload the ORD ATC > system or the airport. Clearly, if a simple line pilot recognized the > problem hours prior (accurate ETA information hours in advance), an airline > should have done the same, and prevented the problem from developing in the > first place (Defect Prevention, ala W. Edwards Deming). > > > > Given the facts, one would think airlines would jump at the chance to > internally implement an FAA proven, independently validated, inexpensive > solution that, within months, can improve on time performance, product > quality, profits, and ATC - while cutting costs, fuel, CO2, noise, and > daily defects, all with a return on investment measured in months, if not > weeks. > > > > Michael > > xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx > > R. Michael Baiada > > cell - (303) 521-6047 > > [email protected] > > > > *From:* Jack Keady via Mifnet <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Sunday, February 22, 2026 11:44 > *To:* David Wardell via Mifnet <[email protected]> > *Cc:* Jack Keady <[email protected]> > *Subject:* [Mifnet 🛰 75489] Cliff Argue gate question > > > > Cliff - re ORD article below, it would seem to make sense if every major > airline was mandated to keep and empty gate available in order to eliminate > a "wait for gate" queue. Does this make much sense and what is the legality? > > > > The headline debate is the escalating American Airlines–United Airlines > (AA-UA) one-upmanship at Chicago O’Hare (ORD), with the episode calling out > a summer schedule in which AA is targeting ~550 daily departures while UA > is pushing *750+*. > > [image: Business Class from Zurich To Tokyo Narita: the BEST in the > Lufthansa group?] > > [image: auto skip] > > Vinay frames the structural reality: UA has held a long-running *gate-space > advantage* at ORD—roughly *50% more raw gate space*—and post-pandemic > momentum has shifted local share in UA’s favor. > > The key nuance: ORD today is not the ORD of the early 2000s. Airfield > capacity is stronger after runway reconfiguration, but the > “summer-from-hell” risk has evolved. The constraint is less about > takeoff/landing throughput and more about *gates*—think aircraft sitting > and waiting for a spot to park. > > Vinay also floats a top-line implication: if the capacity surge sticks, > ORD could push past its 2019 peak (noted at just over 84 million > passengers) and potentially approach*90 million*, tightening the race for > “busiest” bragging rights. > Where Southwest Fits > > The conversation adds a third angle: Southwest Airlines’ (WN) dual-airport > presence (MDW + growing at ORD) and early interline/codeshare dynamics > could subtly reshape flows as legacy carriers flood markets with aggressive > pricing. The bigger takeaway: even marginal network adjustments by WN can > matter when two network carriers are chasing frequency leadership in the > same metro. > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Revised: 20250507 > > You are receiving The Mifnet because you requested to join this list. > > The Mifnet is largely a labor of love, however the infrastructure isn't > exactly cost-free. If you'd care to make a small contribution to the > effort, please know that it would be greatly appreciated: > https://wardell.us/url/mifbit > > All posts sent to the list should abide by these policies: > > 1) List members acknowledge that participation in Mifnet is a > privilege--not a right. > 2) Posts are always off the record, absent specific permission from the > author. > 3) The tone of discussions is collegial. > 4) Posts are expected to be in reasonably good taste. > 5) We discuss ideas and not personalities, and we don't speak ill of other > Mifnet members. > > * The Mifnet WEB SITE is: > https://www.mifnet.com/ > > * To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list at any time please visit: > https://lists.mifnet.com/ > OR: SEND THIS MESSAGE via email: > [email protected]?subject=leave > > * Send Mifnet mailing list POSTS/SUBMISSIONS to: > [email protected] > > * You may reach the person managing The Mifnet at: > [email protected] > > * Please consider the DIGEST version of The Mifnet, which consolidates all > list traffic into 1-3 > messages daily. 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-------------------------------------------------------------------------- Revised: 20250507 You are receiving The Mifnet because you requested to join this list. The Mifnet is largely a labor of love, however the infrastructure isn't exactly cost-free. If you'd care to make a small contribution to the effort, please know that it would be greatly appreciated: https://wardell.us/url/mifbit All posts sent to the list should abide by these policies: 1) List members acknowledge that participation in Mifnet is a privilege--not a right. 2) Posts are always off the record, absent specific permission from the author. 3) The tone of discussions is collegial. 4) Posts are expected to be in reasonably good taste. 5) We discuss ideas and not personalities, and we don't speak ill of other Mifnet members. * The Mifnet WEB SITE is: https://www.mifnet.com/ * To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list at any time please visit: https://lists.mifnet.com/ OR: SEND THIS MESSAGE via email: [email protected]?subject=leave * Send Mifnet mailing list POSTS/SUBMISSIONS to: [email protected] * You may reach the person managing The Mifnet at: [email protected] * Please consider the DIGEST version of The Mifnet, which consolidates all list traffic into 1-3 messages daily. See instructions at: https://lists.mifnet.com/ * Manage your personal Mifnet SUBSCRIPTION at: https://lists.mifnet.com/ * For a list of all available Mifnet commands, SEND THIS MESSAGE via email: [email protected]?subject=help * View The Mifnet LIST POLICIES and PRIVACY POLICY at: https://mifnet.com/index.php/policies * View instructions for Mifnet DELIVERY PROBLEMS at: https://mifnet.com/index.php/delivery-problems * View The Mifnet LIST ARCHIVE at: https://lists.mifnet.com/hyperkitty/list/[email protected]/
