Posted on 11/21/2008 8:44:55 PM PST by Doofer
DETROIT (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. may sell its fleet of five corporate jets after top executives of the three Detroit automakers were harshly criticized by members of Congress this week for their travel expenses.
In a statement issued Friday, Ford (F, Fortune 500) said it is exploring all options for the fleet, which it said has been reduced from nine in 2005.
"Ford's top priority is to continue making progress on our transformation plan, and we do not want anything to distract us," spokesman Mark Truby said in a statement. "We are exploring all cost-effective solutions for our air travel."
The announcement comes just days after Ford CEO Alan Mulally, Chrysler LLC CEO Robert Nardelli and General Motors Corp. (GM, Fortune 500) CEO Rick Wagoner traveled to Washington on separate corporate jets to seek $25 billion in government loans to help them make it through the worst U.S. auto sales downturn in 25 years.
Congress, though, abandoned a vote on the bailout after a disastrous appearance in which the automakers were criticized for lavish corporate travel, as well as for having poor business plans and high labor costs that some members said would keep them from being competitive with Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) andHonda Motor Co. (HMC)
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada, said in Washington that "these guys flying in their big corporate jets doesn't send a good message to people in Searchlight, Nev., or Las Vegas or Reno or anyplace in this country."
Corporations typically lease planes, buy them or charter aircraft to transport executives and other employees. Many require executives to travel by corporate jet for security reasons and so they can meet with other executives and do work while traveling.
(Excerpt) Read more at money.cnn.com ...
How long do you think it will take them to mull the proposed action properly?
eBay?
You think the Dems will bail them out next January, so that they can buy newer model corporate jets?
>Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada, said in Washington that “these guys flying in their big corporate jets doesn’t send a good message to people in Searchlight, Nev., or Las Vegas or Reno or anyplace in this country.”<
what grammar!
When you become a senator, tell him about it in the cloak room.
Ford still haven’t stopped dumping cash into Gay Activist causes.....
I’m still waiting hear why that is a more fiduciarily responsible use of cash than Tooling, Design or Research...
On a different but related note, Ford is still dumping even MORE money into NASCAR - which not only is no longer R&D, but isn’t helping sell vehicles.
Why are they sponsoring NASCRASH again?
Make them drive a 1972 Ford Pinto.
Pelosi and Frank probably count Ford’s pro-homosexual spending in the ‘plus’ column for them.
I agree. They need to cut back on *everything* but core business. That means no racing that doesn’t contribute to R&D, no sponsoring of ANY “community” or “lifestyle” organizations, and most of all, NO MORE “generic sporting event sponsored by Ford!”
Speaking of Ford Pintos:
True, those are clearly unnecessary expenses - but don’t come near the cost of their Union Contracts....and simply dumb ass management...and pension/health benefits, which once again get back to Union Contracts.
Every foreign car manufacturer who came to America, set up shop and built cars here in America with American labor has kicked Detroits ass... That alone should tell them SOMETHING!
No Unions or no ridiculous Union Contracts or Work rules.........and FOREIGN Management at the most senior levels....who are NOT taking down the salaries and benefits of the Beaten Three.
To continue to call them the big three is a travesty.
They should do a Palin and sell one or two on eBay.
It is just a PR move. The amount they’d raise would be a drop in the bucket.
Chrysler spun off thier Corporate Av unit off ten years ago as “Pentastar Aviation”. I used to work for them.
While the media gets caught up in the “Executive Perks” BS, they forget to mention that GM, Ford, and HONDA all run large corpjet operations as basicly a scheduled airline, from the HQ to the outlying plants in the US and abroad, running everything from Employees going to/from training to boxes of widgets needed to keep a line running in Rockford, or such.
In many cases, it’s EASIER, CHEAPER, and exposes the company to less liability, to run thier own scheduled services to places like Kokomo, Indiana, or Bowling Green Kentucky to Detroit, than it is use someimes unreliable commercial service.
And while Reid whines about those CEOS coming to Washington on a BBJ, he says NOTHING about his own use of those same corporate jets when he and his fellow DEMS use them!!
I understand where your coming from, and I'm not a Ford buyer....but I have a nephew in the South that's intimately connected with the car business..Ford and others, and the NASCAR scene.
The only place that Detroit, Ford included, is selling any cars is 1) in the South, and 2) in the Midwest....NASCAR country.
I'm not in favor of bailouts....I'm in favor of the marketplace. If they can't make it without loans, then Chapter 7 and restructuring is the way out. Look at Rover in the UK....they went bankrupt, BMW bougtht them, couldn't deal with the Unions at Rover - sold them but kept the license to build the Mini Cooper.
The Mini is, simply put, is the most successful new-model-auto introduction in a generation.
Lets let Detroit have a run at pure free-market capitalism to improve the breed.
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