Sun Country Airlines CEO talks industry safety, what's ahead for airline
Airline CEO talks industry safety
Sun Country CEO Jude Bricker shared his insights following the nationwide plane crashes.
(FOX 9) - At a time when airline safety is on the minds of many travelers, FOX 9 had the chance to sit down with Sun Country’s CEO to talk about the industry, new guidelines and how his airline is growing post-COVID.
Industry safety
What we know:
When we sat down with Jude Bricker, the CEO of Sun Country Airlines, we didn’t yet know that 932 miles away a Delta flight from MSP International had flipped upside down and an emergency evacuation of all the passengers was underway.
But we were talking about safety in the industry because, just two weeks earlier, a military helicopter and an American Airlines flight collided in D.C., leaving no survivors.
Bricker, a former Marine, has 20 years of aviation experience working previously at Allegiant Airlines as Chief Operating Officer. In answering questions about the process after a commercial airline crash, Bricker said the industry works together to collaborate.
"One of the great things about my industry and the reason we are able to deliver the safety record that we do, is that we all work together on improvements," says Bricker. "We are all competitors, but when it comes to safety, there’s best practices. And if somebody comes up with a better way to do things, we all adapt to that," he adds.
Air traffic control concerns?:
We asked if there were concerns about air traffic control in terms of staffing and pressure as well.
"We are doing everything we can to support legislation that increases funding for air traffic control. Those guys, the air traffic control themselves, are all working really hard and my dispatchers who sit over there interact with air traffic control every day to make our schedule more attainable," says Bricker.
He also added this about the Delta flight in Toronto.
"Fortunately, there was no loss of life on the Toronto flight thanks to the flight crew whose training and professionalism expertly managed to get the passengers safely out of the aircraft. This incident will provide learnings and insight into how the aviation industry can continuously improve our culture of safety going forward."
New industry guidelines
The backstory:
Last fall, the U.S. Department of Transportation finalized rules that require airlines to refund passengers in certain situations when a flight is canceled or significantly delayed.
"Before, those guidelines were about extended delay, and we all interpreted extended delay as an industry very differently and now they (USDOT) are very prescriptive on what an extended delay is, and so we can all deal with it. There’s nothing bad for Sun Country in the new regulations," says Bricker.
As a lower-cost airline, Sun Country doesn’t fly daily to a lot of destinations. In the past, that has led to some consumer angst when flights were canceled and passengers couldn’t reach Sun Country’s customer service. Bricker says the company has increased staffing for its call center, customers now have the ability to have a conversation with the airline via text and the airline now has an app.
"In all cases, when we cancel a flight, you get your money back," says Bricker.
For customers who can’t wait for the next Sun Country flight, the solution is for the customer to re-book their own flight on another airline. Again, he says their customer service has improved.
"That’s the marching orders moving forward. We need to be more robust," he says, adding that they have to make it more convenient for customers if and when they get disrupted.
Sun Country – Hometown Airline
What they're saying:
"We are designed specifically for Minnesotans," says Bricker. "And the challenge with Minnesota leisure is that we all want to go to the same place at the same time," he says.
But Bricker says the goal is always the same: "It’s real simple. If you live in the Twin Cities or nearby, we want to fly where you want to go and when you want to get there for $100. It’s super simple," Bricker says. "The a la carte pricing allows more people to buy tickets and that’s the goal. We want to have an airfare, and everybody has to have that to get on a plane, to be as low as possible, so there are more Minnesotans that are able to travel," he added.
"In order to do that, we have to make things optional. You don’t have to buy a bag, but you can choose to. You don’t have to buy a seat assignment, but you can choose to," he adds.
Bricker adds that unlike other discount airlines, non-alcoholic drinks are complimentary, there’s in-flight entertainment and Sun Country offers roomier seating. Sun Country has also added a contract with Amazon that has added more revenue and growth potential for the company.
"And that gives me a baseline. Even if there’s nothing on the scheduled side, there’s going to be something for our crews, they’ll fly cargo for Amazon or charter for our sports programs. That allows us to be even bigger when Minnesotans want to travel," says Bricker.
Bricker came on board in 2017, navigating new ownership, COVID and post-COVID travel. "Since then, revenues have doubled, the fleet has tripled and employment is up 70%. Payroll has roughly tripled and we’re doing really, really well," he says.
And he says the airport itself helps the company to be successful. "Let me just answer by saying Minneapolis airport, MSP, is a real asset to this community. Minneapolis is so special for so many reasons, it’s close to city centers. It operates in all weather conditions, that’s really hard to do. It has a pipeline system for getting fuel so we have a dedicated fuel structure. So it’s just such an asset and we should all be really proud of the airport we have," says Bricker.