On July 1, 1981, Braniff International's new Braniff Bandwagon Campaign was introduced by Chairman of the Board of Directors John J. Casey, who was elected Chairman on January 7, 1981. The Bandwagon promised Braniff passengers a new company with a renewed spirit and enthusiasm.
Chairman Casey kicked off the new campaign at Braniff Hangar 1 on the west side of Dallas/Ft. Worth Regional Airport, where he spoke to over 1000 Braniff employees to report the latest financial status of the Airline and to announce a new Employee Stock Option Plan, which was approved by Braniff's Board in June and was available to employees for stock purchases beginning in August. Mr. Casey also asked that all Braniff employees sign on to Braniff's Bandwagon with a renewed commitment to provide the best passenger service, new reliability and increased load factors.
After his discussion with Braniff employees at DFW Airport, the Casey Bandwagon flew on to New York, Chicago and Kansas City, where he met with employees, travel agents as well as commercial accounts and the local press corps to discuss and explain Braniff Bandwagon. The tour continued in July to Houston, Miami, Los Angeles and Denver with an array of other station visits planned in August 1981.
Mr. Casey stated at the DFW event, "Our biggest job is to help Braniff become more competitive. New, financially strong competitors are trying to capture our traditional routes. They are resorting to any and all ways to get them. We can't accept that, we have to push them back in order to maintain our long-standing market leadership. We're going to show those folks how to compete in Braniff Country."
Before his departure to the other Braniff stations, Mr. Casey visited with other employee groups at DFW Airport as well as at the Dallas Love Field Operations and Maintenance Base. Casey had plenty of good news to give to the DFW area employees: Braniff's lenders had agreed not to charge interest on Braniff's debt for the period from July 1, 1981, to February 1, 1982. In addition, the lenders had also agreed to forgo any further payments during that time period, which gave Braniff substantial additional cash to help it return to profitability.
Casey enthusiastically told employees at all stations he visited that the, "Key to keeping the Bandwagon rolling are the resources we have to accomplish our job of keeping the competition at bay and letting them know that it wont be easy for them to compete in Braniff Country." Further, he said, "You and I are Braniff Airways, and we have a plan to help us accomplish our job. It involves each one of us taking a button just like I am doing right now and pinning it on. As you do, you are committing yourself to the great Braniff Bandwagon! It says, 'I am Aboard the Braniff Bandwagon'."
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