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Don't, uh, don't connect to Cairo just yet. ...or Algiers. If we hurry, we can get in on the ground floor of India, and we have some time before things go ploin-shaped around there, too.
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Feb 15, 2014 06:14
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| # ? May 16, 2024 00:32 |
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The Merry Marauder posted:Don't, uh, don't connect to Cairo just yet. ...or Algiers. quote:If we hurry, we can get in on the ground floor of India, and we have some time before things go ploin-shaped around there, too. A_Raving_Loon fucked around with this message at 06:21 on Feb 15, 2014 |
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Feb 15, 2014 06:17
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Hah, I didn't know there were non-cosmetic effects. Yeah, develop into India.
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Feb 15, 2014 06:20
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The Merry Marauder posted:Don't, uh, don't connect to Cairo just yet. ...or Algiers. You're right. Let's bid for placement in Tunis and Berlin.
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Feb 15, 2014 07:14
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The Tupolevs are terrible. Ditch the Tupolev for the DC6. Local infrastructure could help. Get on the hotel-purchasing train. Given the high fuel efficiency of the IL4s, you should start serving the low-volume, low-competition routes to get some brand loyalty on them early. Start a route to Tunis, and another one to, say, Cairo.
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Feb 15, 2014 17:25
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Lord Windy posted:Tehran->Cairo->Rome->Europe I agree with both these things. Now for Bidding, I think we should start building up our local poo poo first, play it conservatively and get a good income from your hub before spreading out. Business: Buy a Hotel. Always handy for a bit of money considering business will probably be poor at the start.  The upper left one will be christened Waluigi and I don't really care about the rest, they are expendable.
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Feb 15, 2014 17:34
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Oh man, I still have a cart with this game lying around somewhere. I played the heck out of it once upon a time, but was never very good at it. Let's see if that's changed any. Based on our starting situation, we have 2 useful IL14s and 3 prestigious but totally useless TU104s. I say prestigious because they're currently the only jet aircraft available on the market. Unfortunately, they're also total poo poo. From what I remember of this game, poor fuel economy aircraft usually balance their high operating cost with long range and/or huge passenger bays. This early Tupolev has neither. I agree with vdate that we should sell our Tupolevs back to our communist friends to the north. Assuming we do so, that's going to leave us with a fleet of 2 tiny, short range aircraft. We're obviously going to need some more. Let's analyze what's available. Here are the useful aircraft: The DC6 is cheap to buy, relatively cheap to operate, relatively large, and has a range of 4,000 miles. It's probably the best all-round aircraft on the market at this point. The L1049 is better than the DC6 in every way, but also costs over half again as much. Pragmatically speaking, it's probably only going to be worth it for routes where we actually need the extra 750 miles. The IL14 is a small, cheap to buy and economical-to-run aircraft that works well in low-demand markets like the Mid-East and Africa. Assuming we're focusing our expansion there, we are going to need more of these. And here are the... less useful... aircraft: The Viscount has good stats, but costs too much to be worth buying. Seriously, we can buy 2 IL14s for the price of 1 Viscount, and a DC6 (with a larger passenger bay and over twice the range) is somehow cheaper as well. We should only buy these if Vickers puts them on sale. The TU104 is utter useless garbage that we should never ever buy even if Tupolev is selling them at a loss and giving away free hookers and blow with each purchase. With that in mind, let's Buy some DC6s and some more IL14s. Let's also Buy the Hotel in Tehran. In addition, Open Flights to Tashkent and Baghdad using IL14s for now. Assuming we're sticking to the options presented, let's Bid for Slots in Bombay, Rome, and Cairo with the intention of setting up regional hubs in the latter two cities. Finally, for our staff's names, on the top row, we have Wario and Wadaisy. On the bottom row, we have Wapeach, Waluigi, and... umm... let's call the last guy Barry. Edit: For what it's worth, I seem to have somehow independently arrived at the same Wa-idea as FutureFriend at pretty much the same time. Not sure how/why that happened. 
Critic of the Dawn fucked around with this message at 18:26 on Feb 15, 2014 |
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Feb 15, 2014 18:19
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I agree completely with Critic of the Dawn. It's a good
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Feb 15, 2014 18:35
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Create some local routes to Baghdad and Tashkent. Hotel in Tehran seems like a good idea. Bid for India. Toss those Tupolevs and get some Ilyushins for local travel. FutureFriend posted:The upper left one will be christened Waluigi and I don't really care about the rest, they are expendable. Nah, that's totally Von Kaiser. 
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Feb 15, 2014 18:42
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Going to keep collecting votes until mid-Sunday, about 24 hours from now. An opening business plan is forming up nicely, but there's plenty of room to fine tune. Since a lot can get done over four turns of play, most of what you've all proposed will get some chance to be put into action. Priority will be given to the ideas which earn the most votes. For example, with the current spread there's strong agreement that we're gunning for setting up hubs in Rome and Cairo. An agent each would be comitted to securing slots and then building the new hubs. Next up is securing our hotel in Tehran, so an agent will set to that. The rest of their work-hours for the year will be spread about making inroads in Tunis and India, and scouping up stray hotels if there's any time left to spare. The Tupolevs will be bulldozed out of the hangar, DC6s bought when needed for long/big/euro routes, and IL14s will be stockpiled to fill our short routes. Tiebreaks will be handled at my discression unless folks start proposing business rules for that sort of thing. A_Raving_Loon fucked around with this message at 22:10 on Feb 15, 2014 |
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Feb 15, 2014 18:52
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I'd like to change my vote- if there are still slots available in Tehran, we should bid on them right away. I would recommend against doing a Tehran-Islamabad route, since only ten people or so will ever ride it per week. Do you get charged for having unused slots? If so, we should probably return Islamabad's slots immediately and focus on regional and long-term routes that people will actually use.
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Feb 15, 2014 19:09
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Hedera Helix posted:Do you get charged for having unused slots? If so, we should probably return Islamabad's slots immediately and focus on regional and long-term routes that people will actually use. quote:I would recommend against doing a Tehran-Islamabad route, since only ten people or so will ever ride it per week.
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Feb 15, 2014 19:15
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Securing extra slots in Tehran is probably the most important thing, yeah. The hotel should be bought this year but first quarter should definitely include maxing out our slots in Tehran (for now).
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Feb 15, 2014 19:17
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pre:Jason Kimberley
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Feb 15, 2014 20:20
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CommaToes posted:
We must do this.
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Feb 15, 2014 20:24
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I've found in my experience with the game, that we should open routes more aggressively than the computer does. We can't fill hotels if we don't have passengers. Planes don't make any money sitting in hangars. And unless money is tight, we should be maximizing the use of our executive agents. We should focus on our local area for the early turns. These routes are not the most lucrative, but the medium and big cities will always be profitable, and you definitely want to have good relations with your home turf. Europe will turn into a dogfight between Murica and AirMarx, one which we don't have the capital to compete in right now. Africa is relatively safe from expansion by the Russians, due to the limited range of their planes, but they will look to the Middle East, so we must create stiff competition here! First, purchase the bus line in Tehran, so that we may get more people to and from the airport (it's also a little less expensive than the hotel, which should be our next property purchase). Then, order four DC-6 aircraft. Aircraft take a few turns to arrive usually, so hang on to the Tupolevs until the new planes arrive, then sell them. Open routes to Baghdad and Tashkent using our current supply of aircraft. Next, bid on slots in Karachi, and New Delhi.
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Feb 15, 2014 20:54
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 Igor Strago Just got back from behind the Iron Curtain and now he's ready for capitalism!  Veronica Peters Ready to make her mark in this male dominated industry.  Cindy Strong Actually doesn't mind working in a male dominated industry and spends her free time writing poetry about flowers that no one understands.  Jerry Stiles An intern that was promoted to agent on day one.  Steven Frederickson Do not cross him, or he will destroy you.
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Feb 15, 2014 22:10
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Killer Emcee has it. Seconding all his votes.
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Feb 15, 2014 23:23
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I am so excited about this, I loved Aerobiz. I think we should sell our Tupolevs. They're awful and we can replace them with DC6's. We should use our Ilyushin planes for any profitable local routes where we already have gates. I think we should negotiate with Rome as our initial out of region expansion, as well as with Bangkok, which the DC6 can reach. Cairo is a third choice. We should get as many gates in Tehran as we can to force expansion, and also purchase slots in India, preferably Mumbai. Lastly, we should purchase the bus company.
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Feb 15, 2014 23:23
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Killer Emcee posted:
These get bonus points. With that in mind, we can also monitor the feild agents of our rival airlines. (As far as I know, there's no way to see the portrait of their 5th man) Meet Team 'Murica:  The Great Patriotic Administrators of Air Marx:  And our friendly neighbors at ConAir:  If people want, I can keep track of what each one gets up to over the run of the scenario.
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Feb 16, 2014 02:20
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Even when I first played this game I always loved the second portrait from the left. It almost screams "Eh, I'm not even supposed to be here today" to me.
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Feb 16, 2014 02:38
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Okay, not that I have any real clue about actually making these choices work, but I am on board for Ditching those lovely Tupolevs for less-lovely Ilyushins, Opening routes to Tashkent and Baghdad, Buying the bus company (to better facilitate our core competence of getting people the gently caress out of Tehran), and Expanding into Tunis, from which we will prove to those haughty Romans that the Third Punic War was only an intermission, and finish what Hannibal started. 
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Feb 16, 2014 06:00
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Bear in mind, for those who haven't played the game, turns are basically fiscal quarters, and actions take a certain amount of time. Aircraft orders can take several turns and you can't buy from the opposite side of the Iron Curtain if you're in a NATO country or the USSR. We can do it but we shouldn't assume that forever. Usually business deals only take 1 or 2 turns and one of your agents. Colder relations can cause them to take more time or fail outright. You have to plan ahead several turns in a row. It's also smart, in an area of political turmoil such as our region, to be conservative with our reserves. Political strife can lock us out of a city or country (or even an entire bloc!) and jeopardize a route, our aircraft can be targeted by terrorists causing negative press or even the loss of a plane, the price of oil may fluctuate; your profit stream can turn red in an instant if you play too close to the margins. Edit: one last thing to keep in mind, is that you can only have ONE hub per region! If you're going to expand into new territory then it should be through the most lucrative spot you can get. Big cities with big airports. You're gonna need the slots when you spread your spokes. The Casualty fucked around with this message at 07:31 on Feb 16, 2014 |
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Feb 16, 2014 07:11
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Killer Emcee posted:
Love this, I am voting for this
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Feb 16, 2014 07:15
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The Casualty posted:Bear in mind, for those who haven't played the game, turns are basically fiscal quarters, and actions take a certain amount of time. Aircraft orders can take several turns and you can't buy from the opposite side of the Iron Curtain if you're in a NATO country or the USSR. We can do it but we shouldn't assume that forever. Usually business deals only take 1 or 2 turns and one of your agents. Colder relations can cause them to take more time or fail outright. You have to plan ahead several turns in a row. To re-iterate how I'm going to handle this: Since there's a lot that we can do, and only so much that can get done in a year, All suggested actions will be attempted, with priority given to those with the most votes. Since a lot about our situation can change after a year, unresolved votes will clear after each update leaving a level playing field for the next year's business plan. Voting for 1955 will close at Noon EST, Feb 16, and which point I will compose the resulting business plan and get to playing out the update. Explanations about more of the fine points of the mechanics will be worked into future posts, as they will be easier to discuss when we have examples of them in motion. And on another sidenote: A_Raving_Loon posted:Meet Team 'Murica:
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Feb 16, 2014 07:32
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A_Raving_Loon posted:
That would be great. I like knowing what our competition is up to. According to some quick farsi-english dictionary searching for a dead stupid translation, Air-Ran would be پوییدن-جوّ, transliterated as Javv-Pooyeedan. I think it loses something in translation, though if anyone knows farsi I'm sure there's a more accurate one and maybe a similar pun? Of course, Air-Ran only works because we're mispronouncing Iran, but it still works. I don't get the love for Tunis, though yes I realize it's 1955 and that real life events are modeled ingame. It's not even the third best city on the North African coast (though they don't have anything in Morocco, so it's Tunis or Cairo). fake edit: Oh, and since we're starting in 1955 I guess we won't get to the revolution of 1978. Shah today and Shah forever!
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Feb 16, 2014 07:40
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The Great Patriotic Administrators of Air Marx: From L to R: Lyudmila Pavlichenko: A hero of the Soviet Union during the Great Patriotic War, Pavlichenko is still wracked at night by PTSD from the war. By day she's one of AirMarx's best negotiators, displaying the same iron will and savvy that made her such a feared sniper. When the woman across her table describes how she could kill you from half a mile away, it unnerves local airport officials and leads to quick business deals. Boris: Boris doesn't have a last name. No one really knows what he did before de-Stalinization in 1953. Behind his everyman looks are the dead eyes of a killer, however, and persistent rumors speak of time working beneath Beria. He also spends a surprising amount of time around Lubyanka Square when he's in Moscow. Ronislav Jeremitsky: This high ranking cadre member has this job because his lack of devotion to the ideals of the Party has made them shunt him away from Moscow in the hope that his capitalist sympathies can still somehow serve Mother Russia. His great appetites make him an expert schmoozer, and his kavorka spirit makes him surprisingly hard to resist at the negotiating table. Tatiana Blitznova: This fresh graduate of Moscow State University is endemic of the new generation of Russian who've come of age in the decade after World War Two. Fervently ideological, intelligent, and hard working, she considers herself a world above the decadent western wives who spend all day being leashed to the house of their husbands. habeasdorkus fucked around with this message at 10:11 on Feb 16, 2014 |
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Feb 16, 2014 08:00
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We're doomed, Air Marx has William Shakespeare working for them.
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Feb 16, 2014 08:20
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A_Raving_Loon posted:Meet Team 'Murica: From right to left: 1. Don Draper. Senior VP of Operations. Considered a genius by his peers in the industry, Don is a Korean War veteran, who served with distinction, and uses his brash leadership style to get exactly what he wants at the negotiating table. A creative mastermind, chain smoker, boozehound, and pillager of panties. His favorite activity, other than achieving victory in the boardroom, is taking long naps in his office. 2. Peggy Olson. Acquisitions Executive. Peggy started out as Don's secretary, once. When she managed to seal a crucial deal while Don was MIA, Draper promoted her in exchange for her silence on the matter. Recently began putting on weight mysteriously and wearing ill-fitting coats. Nobody seems to know why, but she is the butt of many jokes and wild water-cooler speculation. 3. Harry Crane. Inboard Office-Haver. Harry is the comic relief of this gang. A slothful buffoon when it comes to everything except making the company money, Harry is only kept around because he is "a visionary," and also he happens to have a rolodex that's one card away from exploding violently. His obsession with the new television technology is sure to land him a nice dose of thyroid cancer in the future. Still, for now, the airline can't find anyone better, and so his future is secure. 4. Dawn Chambers. Junior Executive. The first colored employee of Murica Airlines, a distinction which people remind Dawn of constantly. Hired after Don unilaterally demanded more workplace diversity (much to everyone's chagrin), Dawn has actually landed some impressive accounts. Unfortunately, most people assume that any memos about such accounts are actually in regards to Don, and that somebody is a terrible speller. I mean really, Don is such a 'Murican name, how dare you screw that up?
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Feb 16, 2014 08:48
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I wanted to do one for ConAir, but I honestly couldn't think of any funny.
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Feb 16, 2014 09:33
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A_Raving_Loon posted:And our friendly neighbors at ConAir: Danny Yang Highly stressed out VP of ConAir; tries every morning to make sure that bald spot is perfectly obscured. Harper Lee Just couldn't be bothered to give a poo poo about her job. Receptionist Bot 9000 An android that was programmed to perfectly perform the daily duties of a receptionist. Harry Kong President of ConAir and is really just Danny Yang with a fake mustache.
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Feb 16, 2014 09:39
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 I don't care about the rest of the names, but I think it'll be perfect for the leftmost male to be named Clark Kent
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Feb 16, 2014 10:02
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Oh man, I had so much fun with this game.  I suggest buying the cheapest hotel in every major node we have a line to, at the very least. And I'm seconding (N-thing?) the idea to get more ILs. India will probably be your lifeline, it's really poor, but the ridiculous population size makes up for it.
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Feb 16, 2014 10:28
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Killrrhubarb posted:
Second. This has intriguing possibilities as far as explanations for emergency landings and/or crashes are concerned.
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Feb 16, 2014 17:01
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 Business Plan - 1955 Primary Objectives: pre:7 - Liquidate Tu104s (Replace with DC6s) 6 - Procure IL14s (Deploy on short/mid range flights) 6 - Bid in Rome and Cairo (Intent to establish hubs for Europe and Africa) And we’ll do it by showing the superpowers we don’t need to pick a side to be on the winning team. We’re taking the best of both worlds by combining a cutting edge Soviet lightweight with a battle-hardened American workhorse to bring dependable, economical air travel to the Old World. Secondary Objectives: pre:5 - Bid in India (Bombay & New Delhi) 5 - Open Local Routes (Baghdad & Tashkent) 5 - Purchase Hotel in Tehran 4 - Grow and develop Local Routes 3 - Maximize Slots in Tehran 3 - Purchase Bus Network in Tehran Stretch Goals: pre:-Hotels in Tashkent, Islamabad, and other cities we connect. -Local Bidding in Karachi, Backing off in Islamabad. -Secondary bidding in Tunis and Berlin to prepare for routes in Europe and Africa. -Inroads into SE Asia via Bangkok. Executive Names: Killer Emcee posted:
I’ll leave discussion of our rival executives open a while longer, But for 1955 the polls are closed. Next time, we’ll see what happens when this Aero-Plan hits reality as we take off into 1955.
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Feb 16, 2014 18:04
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 Surprise Emergency MeetingA special event has arisen which I feels calls for a quick flash-vote.   At the start of Q3 1955, this delightful random event fired. A government has approached our airline soliciting donations for a project of theirs. In this case, the UK is looking to make some improvements around the airport in Nigeria. Accepting this deal will give us a huge relations boost with Britain, making it much easier to do business in all cities they control. However, that $75 Million price tag is nothing to sneeze at. So, dear shareholders, I ask you - Is this worth it? Cast your votes over next For reference, here are the cities currently held by the UK: pre:City Region Pop Econ Tour -------- ------ --- ---- ---- Nairobi Africa 0.6 8 5 Lagos Africa 2.1 14 18 Manchester Europe 0.4 22 36 London* Europe 5.6 46 42 Nandi Oceania 0.1 1 8 Singapore* SE Asia 1.4 20 27 Kuala Lumpur SE Asia 0.6 21 28 Hong Kong* SE Asia 4.1 37 31 Kingston S. America 0.4 10 20 *Potential Hub A_Raving_Loon fucked around with this message at 22:17 on Feb 16, 2014 |
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Feb 16, 2014 19:00
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We need that British airspace. I don't know how much $75 million is to our total yearly revenue at this point, but if we could be the premier carrier between the UK and its former colonies, we will be set. I vote BACK THE PROPOSAL.
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Feb 16, 2014 19:04
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That's over 10% of our total funds for potential gains with G.B. holdings. Since we're just starting to spread our wings, let's Decline to back the Project. Also the look of disdain our rep. is giving is all the more reason not to do it.
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Feb 16, 2014 19:04
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I changed stances in a later post, so please disregard this one. Krysmphoenix fucked around with this message at 20:30 on Feb 16, 2014 |
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Feb 16, 2014 19:05
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| # ? May 16, 2024 00:32 |
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Three potential hubs in two different regions are on the Brit-list. Seems like a thing we may regret if we don't act on it. Go for it.
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Feb 16, 2014 19:18
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