Can the military mindset save the passenger airline industry?
Many airline pilots are retired military officers who understand that there’s absolutely no conceivable excuse for the management and command failures that caused the Flight 1348 fiasco. “After more than eight hours on the ground, and 12 hours after the plane had left San Francisco, the captain told passengers he was going to an empty gate, even though he didn’t have permission,” McCartney writes. The pilot deserves credit and praise for taking responsibility for the welfare of the passengers and crew members under his care. This behavior is entirely consistent with a military background, although it’s also practiced by competent managers and leaders who have never been in the Armed Forces. Perhaps the best way to turn around our struggling airlines is to place them under the management of people who neither give nor accept flimsy excuses for appalling performance. About the author William A. Levinson is the principal of Levinson Productivity Systems P.C. and the author of Henry Ford’s
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- Can the military mindset save the passenger airline industry?
