REDjet all-clear for Jamaica and Trinidad Routes – Bigger Better Top Gun and CARICOM’s Iron Eagle

Variety’s the very spice of life

That gives it all its flavour

Cowper, The Task, II

The good news is too good to keep to myself, as it is, ironically, of significance not only to Jamaica, but to all members of CARICOM (Caribbean Common Market).

REDjet, the budget Air Carrier that was being blocked by Regional CAA (Civil Aviation Authorities) in the Caribbean, has now been given the go-ahead to fly to the People’s Republic of Trinidad and Tobago as stated in the article “REDjet 'Gets OK' To Fly Trinidad Route”, published Monday July 18, 2011, The Jamaica Gleaner and the article “REDjet ‘gets okay’ to fly Trinidad route”, published Sunday, July 17, 2011, The Jamaica Observer.

The Government of Jamaica followed suite and granting permission for the budget carrier to fly into Jamaica as stated in the article “Jamaica gives REDjet the clear”, published Monday, July 18, 2011, The Jamaica Observer. A double dip chocolate Ice Cream Treat for those of us whole are fans of Budget Air travel, as a great travesty has been righted, thanks to the persistence of the  father and son duo of Ian and Robbie Burns, co-owners of REDjet.

For those keeping score, this is less than a month since I first published my article on why REDjet was the “Bigger Better Airline” on Wednesday June 1^st 2011 entitled “REDjet vs Caribbean Airlines - Who is The Bigger, Better Airline of them All” to paraphrase Telecom Provider Digicel’s tagline!

And it does not hurt that this crazy-horse Irish born Venture Capitalist, REDjet Chairman Ian Burns, with no prior experience in running an airline and whose only previous leadership roles has been a past president of Wanderers rugby club in Dublin is nonetheless “close friends” [his words] with Irish telecommunications tycoon Denis O'Brien. Advice from RyanAir, on whose model REDjet is based, is a good feather to have in ones hat too.

The road to this moment was not an easy one, Buju Banton Not an easy Road style!! In my last blog article on REDjet entitled “REDjet vs Caribbean Airlines - Who is The Bigger, Better Airline of them All”, the fight against the CAA of each country was quite well advanced, Top Gun (1986) and Iron Eagle (1986) Style.

People reading my article, play the victory song, Mighty Wings!

To quote REDjet Chairman Ian Burns: “There is obviously some sort of political interference going on. Our point is, let the consumer decide by giving them a choice. We're not going to cost the taxpayers a bit of money if we fail, so why can't the market decide?”.

Good to note that REDjet Chairman Ian Burns is a sporting chap and in the true spirit of competitive haggleing with the Jamaican Authorities, who naturally back CAL, had decided from early on not to take the Jamaican Government to court as stated in the article “REDjet: We're not suing Jamaica govt”, published Friday, June 03, 2011, The Jamaica Observer.

REDjet encountered problems with flying in the Caribbean due to being only able to service certain routes and the prolonged delay in being granted approval to fly to Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica as stated in the article “Discount carrier REDjet struggles to fly in Caribbean”, published Friday, June 03, 2011, The Jamaica Observer.

Many saw the US$10 per seat and the ultra-low fares of US$103.42 from Trinidad to Barbados, 66% lower than the least expensive CAL (Caribbean Airlines) flight as an impossibility, even a gimmick. But even the analysts in the Aviation Industry agreed that it was a logical necessity to further Regional Integration.

This as low airfares are the key to easier travel and thus Regional Integration within CARICOM, a point even echoed by analysts such as Managing partner of Miami-based Airline Information, Roger Williams, quote: “The Caribbean certainly needs to be stimulated as far as price; it is one of the highest priced airline markets in the world. However, the Caribbean also needs reliable air service, something that its own airlines have failed to consistently deliver.”

From my point of view, US$9.99 per seat was just the cost of the seat. The other charges added on are what REDjet needs to control to be profitable and viable in the long term. Managing partner of Miami-based Airline Information, Roger Williams, points this out, quote: “The Caribbean certainly needs to be stimulated as far as price; it is one of the highest priced airline markets in the world. However, the Caribbean also needs reliable air service, something that its own airlines have failed to consistently deliver.”

Barbados Tourism Minister Richard Sealy agrees, coming out along with the rest of Barbados in full support of REDjet as stated in the article “Barbados tourism minister backing REDjet”, published Wednesday June 8 2011, The Jamaica Observer. 


Thus making the accusations of anti-competitive behaviour by REDjet appear sport on, as stated in the article “REDjet accuses regional players of stifling growth”, published Monday, June 13, 2011, The Jamaica Observer with the Government of Jamaica and Trinidad, majority stakeholders in CAL, being made out to be two (2) countries holding the rest of the Caribbean at ransom and threatening the long viability of CARICOM.

Analysts predicting doom and gloom for REDjet based on the experience of running of Antigua-based LIAT fail to factor in the fact that LIAT was Government run and offered too many things in-flight that were not necessary when taking what is essentially a flying bus across the Caribbean. Much as I pointed out in my blog article entitled “REDjet vs Caribbean Airlines - Who is The Bigger, Better Airline of them All”.

Best to make the REDjet Chairman Ian Burns explain that one as it is really a simple mantra that will make REDjet profitable in the long run: cost cutting!

Specifically cost cutting on:

1. No free food or business class service
2. Fast turnarounds at airports to save on parking fees
3. No overnighting by staff
4. Internet reservations, thus eliminating booking offices.

Not only are the operation of Budget Carrier REDjet are not only more efficient as noted in my blog article entitled “REDjet vs Caribbean Airlines - Who is The Bigger, Better Airline of them All”. REDjet, which is modeled off Ryanair, is very much akin to Telecoms Providers such as Telecom Provider Digicel and Telecom Provider LIME, and are thus also an enabler of Regional integration of CARICOM via the build out of their HSDPA+ Release 7 (High Speed Downlink Packet Access Plus) Network Caribbean wide as stated in my blog article entitled “LIME and American Tourist Data Avalanche - The US$80 Million Dollar CannonBall Run”.

So as the story is now well known, REDjet safety concerns as mentioned in the article “Safety concerns holding up REDjet license”, published Thursday, June 16, 2011, The Jamaica Observer were eventually cleared up, meeting all safety requirements as deemed necessary by the CAA of Jamaica and the Twin Island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

Senator Mike Henry, then Minister of Transport and Works went to the Twin Island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago to grease the wheels of the process so to speak as stated in the article “Henry in Trinidad to address REDjet issue”, published Thursday, June 16, 2011 BY INGRID BROWN Senior staff reporter, The Jamaica Observer.

This after Barbados, who adopted REDjet as their national carrier, grounded a CAL aircraft on the grounds of routine checks as stated in the article “B’dos PM says C’bean Airlines detention was routine”, published Wednesday, June 22, 2011, The Jamaica Observer. Many, however, suspected it had to do with Barbados-backed REDjet not being granted the right to land in Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica, the owners of CAL and who stood to lose the most, should REDjet be granted a license to operate as a budget carrier in their airspace in keeping with the Treaty of Chaguaramas and the recent Open Skies Agreement!

REDjet’s application was apparently placed on a fast track by Senator Mike Henry, then Minister of Transport and Works as stated in the article “REDjet's application to operate in Ja, T&T takes flight”, published Friday, June 17, 2011, The Jamaica Observer.

And the rest is history, with the war of words now at an end. It would be quite interesting to see what The Jamaica Gleaner or The Jamaica Observer as well as out local Television Broadcasters Television Jamaica and CVM TV have to say on this issue on their respective morning time programs Smile Jamaica and CVM at Sunrise on Tuesday July 19th 2011AD, The Day After (TV 1983).

Until then, the inevitable is now as I predicted in my last blog article on REDjet entitled “REDjet vs Caribbean Airlines - Who is The Bigger, Better Airline of them All”: CAL will be eventually gobble up by REDjet, the Digicel of Air Travel and will grow from strength to strength, one plane at a time. Especially when REDjet gets the more lucrative US routes, proving that variety [competition] is indeed the spice of life!

JA$10 bets on this happening in the next five (5) years as REDjet rises to become the “Bigger Better” Top Gun (1986) and the ultimate Regional CARICOM integration Iron Eagle (1986), anyone?

Columbia U says Google erodes Memory - Johnny Mnemonic The Computer wore Tennis Shoes

The true University of these days is a Collection of Books

Carlyle, Heroes and Hero-Worship

This article should really be entitled “I told you so” as did indeed say this in a couple of my previous blogs entitled “Apple iPad and Newspapers - Return of the Jedi” and the article “Telecom Providers, Bloggers and the Media - Robin Hood, Men in Tights” in which I complained about the lack of reading among young people due to what appears to be a shortened attention span. Plus Audia Granston, my Seventh Day Adventist princess, often pointed this out to me that which I shall reveal later down in my article: Google is rotting our brains.

Both of my previous blog articles, which are related to this recent revelation, swirled about a common article on BusinessWeek and CNET News articles respectively related to a book by Nicholas Carr entitled “The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains”.

The news that so troubles me?

Columbia University has presented findings of a study that effectively provides strong evidence, if not clear proof for what author Nicholas Carr hypothesized in his book entitled “'The Shallows': Is the Net fostering Stupidity?”, which made its debut in June 2010AD: The Internet is indeed “fostering stupidity”.

This as the article entitled “Google rewiring the way we remember, study says”, published JULY 14, 2011 7:57 PM PDT by Leslie Katz, Health Tech - CNET News and the article “How Google is wreaking havoc on our memory skills”, published JULY 14, 2011 by MOLLY MCHUGH, DigitalTrends gives details as to how the memory is being altered by our interaction with the Internet, specifically a search engine name Google. 

The research paper, which appeared in Science Journal under the title “Google Effects on Memory: Cognitive Consequences of Having Information at Our Fingertips” is authored by lead researcher Dr. Betsy Sparrow a psychologist by profession, who sums up her research simply, quote: “We are reorganizing the way we remember things. We remember less through knowing information itself than by knowing where the information can be found.”

Dr. Betsy Sparrow study revealed that people were more likely to remember where to find information as opposed to the information itself, and their chief portal for that information was the Internet. This suggests that the ease of access to information is in essence, making us use our brains less and thus is “fostering stupidity” as Nicholas Carr posits.

Not surprising, I grudgingly admit uncomfortably, as I have personally been a chief exponent of this concept, as I find it pointless to memorize that much information in one’s head. Even in my work habits when I was a Network Maintenance Technician at C&W Jamaica Ltd (2001 to 2004) and later as a Radio Frequency Technician at Telecom Provider CLARO (2008 to 2009), I HEAVILY depend on Laptops, the company’s assigned Blackberry Bold smartphone and my written notes (best of all, as I still have them!!!) to remember things for me.

This as the tedious nature of Telecoms Engineering work meant a lot of island wide driving about and checking left you tired. So any research done would have to be via the Internet, being as it was the main mode of communication via email being as we were building out a islandwide HSDPA or 3G Compliant Data Network and GSM Voice Network with a tertiary CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) Voice and Data Network for Landline.

GigaOM Mathew Ingram  has my back in this respect in his article “Why it’s okay to outsource your memory to the cloud”, published July 15, 2011, 10:03am PT By Mathew Ingram, GigaOM.

However Audia Granston, my short pint sized Seventh Day Adventist Princess and NCTVET certified Cosmetologist, who would be my Navigator as I drove about in my Suzuki Swift Jeep from Cell site to Cell site, would criticize me about this, labeling my poor memory as a side effect of too much computer use.

She is more on Nicholas Carr’s side of this argument, being as her job as a Cosmetologist, while alive, entailed more memorizing people’s names and faces and personalities, information which Google cannot provide us with……..yet!

Even this article is written using Google as the research portal, as opposed to checking books first then going to the Internet when I could not find the information in books.  

The respective article on the book entitled “'The Shallows': Is the Net fostering Stupidity?”, published June 3, 2010, 5:00PM EST, by BusinessWeek - The Stack and the article “A hard look at the Web's 'shallows'”, published JUNE 29, 2010 4:00 AM PDT by Tom Krazit, Relevant Results - CNET News suggested this as well. That is to say, the more we use the Internet and depend on it for all our information, the less we use our brains and thus become less capable at thinking independent of computers.

Author Nicholas Carr book is a follow-on, curiously, to another controversial book entitled “The Big Switch”, in which he predicted the coming of Cloud Computing. Looks like he is spot on, as even here in Jamaica as evidenced in my blog article entitled “Digicel Cloud Backup Service and future Cloud-Based Services - V.S Naipaul's A House for Mr Biswas” and the Geezam Blog article entitled “Digicel’s Cloud Backup Services – A deep Analysis” this is true.

Plus my raft of articles mentioning “Cloud Computing” are easily searchable on my personal Blog. So in my eyes, Nicholas Carr work is visionary as he sees the human side of a Silicon Valley that wants to “wow” you with gadgets that they themselves understand how to use and which have such a deep impact on how we think.

As for a solution to this problem, unlike Dr. Betsy Sparrow of the Columbia University and Nicholas Carr? Get used to it, as it is the eventual future of humanity as the article “Why it’s okay to outsource your memory to the cloud”, published July 15, 2011, 10:03am PT By Mathew Ingram, GigaOM encourages us to do.

I just hope that the Cloud-Based Networks and Broadband Networks, be they Wired, Wireless or Waveguide (Fiber Optic) these Telecom Provider are building such as the KDDI all Data Network in Japan as stated in my blog article entitled “KDDI's Broadband WiMax and Wi-Fi Municipal Network - Ruckus's Japanese Flight of the Navigator” are made more reliable and at least can satisfy the five 9’s i.e. 99.999% uptime requirements for an always connected society.

Also it would be really good too if the “Manual” switch is kept nearby, as the level of interconnectedness that the future heralds with M2M (Machine-to-Machine) Networks as stated in the article “The Internet of Things [INFOGRAPHIC]”, published July 15, 2011 at 9:00 am PST by Dave Evans, Cisco Blog and prognosticated in my blog article entitled “NFC and M2M – Cashless Society and the Internet of Things” is frightening.

As I had advised in my blog article entitled “Google and AI - The Matrix and Terminator Rise of the Machines” and the article “Google and AI - I Robot.

This as the eventual extrapolation of both the work of Dr. Betsy Sparrow of the Columbia University and Nicholas Carr leads to a scenario not unlike that presented us in a benign way in the movie The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969) and more obviously with memory augmentation in the movie Johnny Mnemonic (1995).