Industry Profile:Market Size: Approximately $95 billionMarket Growth Rate: Domestic 2.9%, International 5.0% (Expected to 2017)Stage of life cycle: maturity for national, growth for internationalNumber of companies in the industry: 43 mainline airlines and 79 regional airlines. Extent of competitive rivalry: primarily large carriers (revenues above $1 billion). Historical carriers developing low-cost branchesCustomers: 661 million domestic passengers. Expected growth in professional customers Degree of vertical integration: mixed; some have low-cost reservation systems, alliances with regional and international airlines as well as hotels. Fuel costs covered. Saber Holdings and Galileo International connect airlines and travel agents. No mention of airlines employing in-house catering. Learning curve effects: Not a factor in this industry. schedules, fuel costs, reservations, etc. Product features: diversified; customers can enjoy premium service through low-cost travel and seamless international connections. Economies of scale: The sector includes several very large players and several medium to small players. Capacity utilization: high rates required to achieve appropriate profitability Industry profitability: below to above average; fuel and maintenance costs, a growing division of management personnel, employee unionization and competitive price wars are margin problems. Porter's 5 forces Threat of new entrants - Moderate - Deregulated industry. Higher threat of new entrants during industry downturns (e.g. JetBlue entry point). Existing airlines can encroach on an opponent's major or regional market share. High cost of entry into the industry Bargaining power of buyers - High - No or very low cost of switching airlines Bargaining power of suppliers - High - the two key supplies needed are aircraft and fuel. Fuel prices are negotiable depending on quantity. There are only two aircraft suppliers, Airbus and Boeing. Threat of Substitutes - Low - Buses, boats, trains and cars are substitutes but are generally not cost- or time-effective substitutes for most consumers Degree of Rivalry - Very high to intense - Competitors multiple, highly strategic issues, often easily imitable innovation and low switching costs for consumersValue chainSupport activitiesInfrastructure – Flat organizational hierarchy – Terminal at JFKGRH – Staff have access to management and CEO – a culture/philosophy of good treating employees and a reputation as a great place to work. Corporate profit sharing, high people productivity and rapid progressTechnology – Paperless cockpits, VoIP customer service, innovative cultureProcurement – ​​9 new Embraer E190 aircraft. Fuel. Staff.Main ActivitiesInbound Logistics – Cost-effective, easy-to-use reservation system, ticketless travel, pre-assigned seats, paperless cockpits, search engine optimization and BlueTurn; to minimize time on the ground.