New Mexico Airlines CEO Greg Kahlstorf
In an email to his customer service manager Wednesday, New Mexico Airlines CEO Greg Kahlstorf calls Los Alamos a “s—hole”.
“I have no interest in discussing Los Alamos with the press. I’m trying to end service to that s—hole effective tomorrow, and they can make their own assumptions about why,” Kahlstorf stated in the email to Cheryl Leong, which he copied to NMA President Gabriel Kimbrell as well as Los Alamos County Manager Harry Burgess.
In another email obtained by the Los Alamos Daily Post through a public information request to Los Alamos County, Kahlstorf told Leong, “Don’t waste a lot of time soothing nerves, answering questions or trying to calm anybody down. Let the County handle any anxiety their decisions may create.”
Burgess sent a notice of termination to Kahlstorf Tuesday following weeks of on again off again airline service. New Mexico Airlines began canceling flights in November, started flying again, and then canceled more flights in December. Los Alamos County sent out press releases informing the public of the cancellations and promising more details once New Mexico Airlines explained what was going on.
Conflicting reports began to surface between the FAA and Kahlstorf as to the reasons New Mexico Airlines suddenly stopped flights to and from Los Alamos and the Albuquerque Sunport as well as Carlsbad. Kahlstorf said he decided to ground his fleet because of safety concerns at the Carlsbad Airport, adding that he grounded the Los Alamos flights as well to avoid being accused of playing favorites.
In response to an email from Leong asking what she should tell customers, Kahlstorf responded, “Advise callers that the airline looks forward to terminating Los Alamos flights as soon as possible, and is working with the County and our attorneys to see how quickly service can be stopped.
“Reservations departing on or after the termination date can be refunded. Reservations departing prior to termination are subject to our existing cancellation/refund policies. Passengers can direct their comments/concerns to Harry Burgess, Los Alamos County Manager. The decision to terminate appears to be his. Once we know how rapidly we can actually terminate service, that date will be posted on our web site. Sorry I can’t be more definitive at this point, however, there may be contractual issues I am not fully aware of. I expect to get clarity on that today.
“You may also inform passengers that even with a County subsidy, the Los Alamos market performs so poorly, our plan has been to terminate service on or before May, 2015 anyway. Don’t waste a lot of time soothing nerves, answering questions or trying to calm anybody down. Let the County handle any anxiety their decisions may create. Passengers can obtain Mr. Burgess’ number/address from Google, or contact Directory Assistance for information.”
Burgess stated in his email to Kahlstorf Tuesday that there is only a 10-day notice requirement in the contract between Los Alamos County and New Mexico Airlines:
“We chose to utilize this 10 days (as opposed to immediate termination) in order to not strand any ticket holders that may have flights already scheduled during this time period, while also giving a heads up to those who have flights scheduled beyond the 10 days enough time to consider alternate travel plans. The 10-day cancellation clause with in the contract is only at the County’s discretion, and pursuant to the contract we expect that NM Air will continue its scheduled flights through the Jan. 23 termination date.”
Kahlstorf responded to Burgess in an email Wednesday saying, “Actually, our system books 364 days into the future, so the County’s action will disrupt the travel plans of many foreign and domestic travelers, even if we do stay through the 23rd. Gabe, (NMA president) please review the contract today, to determine what exposure (if any) we risk with immediate termination. If necessary, consult with Wayne Bingaman to see how quickly we can achieve the County’s stated objective of terminating service; effective tomorrow, if possible. Harry, if Counsel advises we are indeed contractually bound to remain through the 23rd, we will do our best to accommodate your wishes. You must understand, however, service to Los Alamos is entirely contingent upon weather, mechanical issues, pilot availability and other factors which may be beyond our control, so I’ll keep fingers crossed!”
Kahlstorf ended his email to Burgess with a winking smiley face.
Pacific Air Holdings L.L.C., doing business as Pacific Wings Airlines, is an American commuter airline headquartered in Mesa, Ariz. The airline operates flights under the brands New Mexico Airlines and GeorgiaSkies in New Mexico and Georgia, respectively. The airline formerly operated under the brands TennesseeSkies and KentuckySkies in Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as under the Pacific Wings name in Hawaii.
Reports of turbulence have followed the airlines in its operations from Hawaii to Georgia. A Los Alamos resident sent the Los Alamos Daily Post a recap of her recent experiences with New Mexico Airlines along wih links she found related to the airlines and its associated brands:
Nov. 26
Purchased flights to/from Los Alamos Airport to Albuquerque Sunport (departing Sunday, Dec. 14 and returning Dec. 21) through the LANL travel system.
Dec. 11, 7 p.m.
I received a voicemail from Pacific Wings informing me that my Dec. 14 flight was cancelled. I called them back at ~9:15 p.m. and spoke to a representative who told me that the flight was cancelled due to “a mechanical.” It sounded a bit strange, so I asked a bit more and was told that it was “unplanned maintenance.” The rep said she had processed my refund for the Dec. 14 flight and that the Dec. 21 flight was still scheduled.
Dec. 13, 12:47 a.m.
My phone rang in the middle of the night from 424-666-7824. I didn’t answer but got a voicemail from Pacific Wings letting me know that my flight on Dec. 14 was cancelled. It sounded like the same rep I had spoken to on Dec. 11. I called back at the 888 number she had provided (888-575-4546, different from the website number) and asked why they were calling me at this time, and for a second time. I told her what time it was in Los Alamos, NM, yet the rep behaved as if these were normal business hours and gave a strange non-apology for “letting me know about the flight cancellation,” as if that were my issue. I asked again to be refunded for the flight, and also asked who told her to call customers at this hour. She said she was not allowed to provide that information and then hung up on me. However, I saved the voicemail she left me.
Dec. 13, 10:33 a.m.
I receive a voicemail from Pacific Wings informing me that my Dec. 14 flight has been cancelled. I called back and spoke to a woman named Cassie in Nevada who claimed to be in management and said she had worked for the company for seven years. I asked why they had contacted me three times, including one in the middle of the night, and she said that they only had a record of a rep leaving me a voicemail on Dec. 11 and suggested it was my own travel agent who had called me in the middle of the night (?!). She also said there was no record of any refund being processed on my account. When I asked her about why flights were being cancelled, she said that only my flight on the 14th was cancelled due to “a mechanical” and all other flights were operational. She stuck to that story despite the fact that her CEO, Greg Kahlstorf, has been on the local news to say that all flights in NM were cancelled until further notice. The rep doggedly stayed on her script no matter what I said, to the point of denying what the CEO said on the local news. She claimed that she could not provide me with *any* information about *any* flight unless I had a reservation or was making a reservation. She also disagreed with me when I said that the company operates five planes in NM, claimed there were many more, but refused to give me a specific number. Apparently this time Pacific Wings needed my credit card information to process my refund, which I was very reluctant to give at this point but eventually did. I cancelled both flights and asked for email confirmation for both. While I did receive a strange email from “MyTripAndMore” that required a login, it was unclear whether that was from Pacific Wings; however, I can see in the LANL travel system that the flight is now labeled “Cancellation Confirmed.”
This has been one of the most bizarre customer service experiences I have ever had, and has left me with a strong impression that there is something seriously wrong with this company!
After they woke me up in the middle of the night, I did some searching online about the company. They appear to have suddenly cancelled service in other markets as well, eventually leaving the market altogether. There are many articles in the Honolulu Star-Advertiser (formerly the Star-Bulletin) that are behind a paywall, but there are a few that are freely available (listed below).
Part of the strange Pacific Wings Hawaii story:
Tam Ho cleared of assault on Pacific Wings CEO (note that the Wikipedia Pacific Wings page claims he was severely injured but provides no link to back that up). I can’t get the full article but here’s the cached version of the first paragraph:
Search for Pacific Wings Wackenhut for more on this bizarre story.
Apparently Pacific Wings changed their website just for Kentucky:
The Hawaii Boycott Pacific Wings Facebook page (with lots of additional links):
https://www.facebook.com/groups/107068373969/?ref=br_tf
KOB 4 report with the CEO in Albuquerque:
https:////www.kob.com/article/stories/s3647189.shtml#.VIyogivF_VI
KOB 4 says Pacific Wings gives conflicting stories about cancellations:
https:////www.kob.com/article/stories/S3648432.shtml?cat=500