Lodamun

[imperialpearl]

Having made the broader commitment to address the nation’s domestic, intra-state commerce woes, President William Stedman, Secretary of Infrastructure and Transport Henry Bishop and Secretary of Commerce and Industry Anthony Harrell met with the CEOs of the nation’s leading airlines, wherein the administration committed some 60 billion LOD to incentivise the airlines to increase their focus on domestic air travel. In a communique issued earlier this morning, Whitehall Press Secretary Eric O'Neal stated that the CEOs of New World Airlines, Pioneer, Continental Airlines and Seleyan Airlines had attended the meeting and were in general agreement with much of the proposals laid before them by the administration. The communique noted that the meeting was an open discussion between the administration and the airline industry on the various challenges they face with respect to their domestic operations. It was previously reported that although the airlines had not spent significant funds in expanding their operations beyond Lodamun’s borders, very little investment had been made to expand their domestic operations, which has led many to believe that for the better part of the previous century, the Lodamese aviation industry had been in virtual stasis. “What was reported back from the admissions of the CEOs was that the aviation sector had been in virtual stasis. They chalked that up to regulatory inertia and collapsing demand, but the assessment of the DoIT (Department of Infrastructure and Transport) noted that outdated fleets and limited connection between secondary cities played a major role in the industry’s stalled development,” the communique read. When coupled with the fact that individuals were more likely to travel across the country via passenger train, where the prices were considerably cheaper and the services were supposedly more reliable, the industry’s current state is thus brought into context.

The Whitehall communique noted that the administration’s 60 billion LOD commitment would primarily focus on providing grants to the airlines and their smaller competitors to not only update their fleets but also improve the quality of service delivery to passengers. It noted that whereas previously issues related to the design and functionality of the airlines’ various websites and services were not captured under the requirements of grant funding, under this new regime, they would be. “Part of the 60 billion LOD committed to the industry focuses on ensuring that these airlines improve the quality of service delivery. They must abandon the idea that lacklustre investment in better systems and procedures would be enough for them to continue to operate within Lodamun, be it domestically or internationally. Websites must be updated, systems and procedures need to be modernised, and the passenger needs to be at the centre of the experience,” the communique noted. Additionally, the communique also pointed to the fact that some 25 billion LOD had been solely dedicated to partially subsidising the prices of domestic flights. It noted that with domestic airline tickets exceeding those offered by the nation’s passenger rail companies, there was ultimately a need for a major rethink of the formula behind airline tickets. The Department of Infrastructure and Transport and the Lodamese Civil Aviation Commission have noted that although, as domestic flights become more frequent in the future (it is hoped), in the interim, there was a necessity for the federal government to intervene and subsidise the price of tickets such that their prices may mirror or directly compete with those of the railway companies. The DoIT later clarified that government subsidies on domestic airline tickets would only be available for business, premium economy and economy class seats, as first class seats would not be captured under the subsidies regime.

Some 10 billion LOD had been earmarked for the airlines to develop domestic cargo divisions, with part of the financing going directly to airports (present and future) to construct new, modern cargo terminals and a modernisation of processing to increase turnaround times. Commerce Secretary Harrell stated that although it was obvious that the work of enhancing intra-state commerce would ultimately have to be met by the freight rail industry, there was still room for domestic cargo flights, pointing to the broader successes of the Lodamese Postal Services, which enhanced its own productivity levels domestically and internationally via a comprehensive restructuring of its air cargo service. “I think the airlines should jump at the opportunity to get their operations in order, partially on the bill of the Lodamese Government. This is an opportunity for them to demonstrate that they are indeed capable of the innovation they’ve alluded to in their quarterly and annual financial statements and strategic plans,” Secretary Harrell commented.