Why National Carriers Exist and 5 Other Aviation Trends This Week

>>Many politicians fear their nations will be irrelevant if they abandon their money-losing flag airlines. That’s probably a stretch. In most places, the market likely would fill the gap — provided the government got out of the way. But national pride is powerful, and few people want to see storied brands disappear: Why Do National Airlines Still Exist?

>>Many politicians believe their nations must have a national airline. But in most cases, they’re wrong. The weakest carriers probably should disappear, and the market can take care of the rest: A Case Against National Airlines

>>Folks in Pittsburgh would probably love a nonstop flight to Dubai. But will they get it? It seems unlikely, even if Emirates CEO Tim Clark said the airline would consider flights from smaller U.S. cities: Emirates May Resume U.S. Growth as Business Recovers From Trump Policies

>>JetBlue took criticism for moving to raise bag fees first. But as the airline’s CEO, Robin Hayes, made clear, customers who plan in advance will keep getting to pay the old rate: JetBlue CEO’s Rationale on Higher Bag Fees: ‘We Hate Increasing Fares’

>>Airlines need to increase revenue. We get that. But can’t they be smarter about how they assess fees? Why Airlines Should Be More Creative as They Weigh Fee Increases

>>Southwest has survived by being different. That gets harder, but the lessons of its past success may help define its legacy. The Texas-based airline is one of the subjects in Skift’s recent sixth anniversary book, For the Long Haul, Lessons on Business Longevity, whose chapters we are excerpting for you here: Original Disruptor Southwest Airlines Survives on Ruthless Business Savvy