They argue that airline managers now care about earnings per share rather than market share.

One might expect a traveler's optimum choice to be $100; that is, the traveler values the antiques at the airline manager's maximum allowed price.

But, he added, he has seen little effort by airline managers to begin to mend fences.

From the perspective of an airline manager, it is pretty clear that something other than supply and demand is driving up jet fuel prices.

Moreover, airline managers note that in most industries new people coming into entry-level jobs are younger than the veterans, and work for less.

Few airline managers put any stock in the union insistence that inexperienced flight attendants present a safety hazard.

Many international airline managers are lobbying their governments to permit greater consolidation to achieve higher economy and efficiency.

Beyond labor costs, airline managers are re-examining other fundamental aspects of the industry that they now say might be hobbling operations.

Graham was previously an airline manager, a diplomat and a pensions manager.

"The way it runs now, they just dictate to us," said one airline manager who has been involved in the planning for the announcement.