How do you manage a fleet of 1,000+ aircraft?

[Tuckernut]

I am in total awe of the guys that successfully manage really huge fleets.  I try to manage 25 and it is like herding cats.

How do you do it?  Have you written some code that automates the process?

Whatever it is it obviously works well.

Cheers.

[schro]

Steps to replicate:

1. Insist your 1000+ plane airline is a "small regional airline"
2. Be consistent and focus on the big picture, don't get lost in the dtails.
3. Don't consistently do unprofitable things.
4. Set an alarm to remind you to buy more things from the used market and/or your suppliers
5. ....
6. Profit

[Tha_Ape]

I'll have a look at your airline in GW#2 tonight/tomorrow morning, will tell you what I can see.
But the base is (as for GW#2 at least), own, don't lease. Well, you have to lease in the beginning, but own as soon as you can.
Not always the case, it's only mandatory from the late 90s onward because of expensive fuel, but as GW#2 is 2022...

More to come soon.

[knobbygb]

I'd say:
(1) make sure you have a LOT of free time - 2 to 3 hours per day if possible. I work seasonally in summer only, so I time my airlines that the most work needs to be done in winter when I can. 
(2) Have a plan from the start and try to stick to it. Do things with a view to the future so you don't have to be constantly tinkering and re-jigging things later on. From your very first 707 you should be thinking "how will this work on A350/787". From your first DC9 you should be grouping routes together that will be big enough for A321 and keeping the A319 routes together too.
(3) If you really want to be big (500+), be realistic. I have a friend who starts EVERY game at LHR, ALWAYS buys 200 747 in the 70's and 80's and ALWAYS Bankrupts by the mid 90's, then does it all over again when it doesn't quite work out.  OK for him but not my style.
(4) Be cautious (see point 3) but also ruthless. Seeing off competition before they become too big is the way to dominating your chosen base, which you chose very carefully, didn't you? (see 3 again).

[gazzz0x2z]

There are tactical points, and there are strategical ones.

Strategy : Plan you fleet transitions long ahead(both fleet change and leased-to-owned transition(this one can be a killer, done too early or too late)). Never have more than 2 main fleet groups(plus one for replacement)(this rule has exceptions, but for now, forget them). Be part of an alliance - the best way to have bird suppliers. In GW2, I replaced 450 F28s by CRJs within 4 years or so, thanks to 4 suppliers within Elite.

Tactics : Stick to your 2 main niches(the biggest fleets are usually 1 single aisle + 1 very large, unless they play in Atlanta where 2 single-aisle fleets is common), but exploit them fully. map the demand to every possible destinations, check even the most unlikely flights like BVA-PIK. Don't price war. Strangulate your weak opponents with your mere presence. Adjust your seating configuration. Don't fly beyond range. Check fuel prices trend to hedge smart. Be online a few times a day to grow quickly(that's less important in the later years, unless you're in the middle of a huge fleet renewal with several suppliers - then you need to connect at least briefly every 4-5 hours).

(plus everything others said, of course)

[Tuckernut]

Guys, thanks for the realistic and useful advice.  I especially like starting out as a small regional airline.  I tend to go for a mid range carrier.  I try to stick with one family (A319/320/321 and then the A330) but sometimes I can't get an A330 so I switched to a 767.  I am learning, thanks to your help.  Cheers!

[Andre090904]

The real problem is not the growth or to get a huge fleet, but to maintain profitable in the long-term (aka fleet transitions and/or fleet renewals)

In current gw2 for example I am #2 in transported cargo with roundabout 500-600 767/IL-96. It was no big deal to get that number of aircrafts with the help of the alliance. It's also no problem to schedule them. But it's so damn difficult/time intensive to renew them! If you get 600 aircraft within a few years in the 1990's, you need to get 600 new ones around 2020! So that's the big challenge...be away for a couple of weeks and you missed your perfect timing. Don't be around much and you are barely able to buy your new aircraft off the used market from your alliance mates. It takes ages to renew a big fleet! Some of the "new" aircrafts my alliance partners bought for me are already 6 years old because I don't find the time to buy them from them (since we are only allowed to buy 2-3 per game week). So that takes time...

Or look in gw2 at the guy who is currently #1 in transported cargo. He has like 500 757F and 400 A320 that are 26 yrs old in average. 10 more years and those birds will be forced to stay on the ground (35 years). I don't see any renewals going on so that will be interesting to observe...

Growing is not challenging, but staying big is (at least in long game worlds).

[Cardinal]

Another thing to remember is if you see an airline with 1000+ airplanes, they aren't always all in the air. Especially if said airline is going through a fleet renewal.

I have 1031 planes. 209 of them are sitting on the ground because I only get about 2 hours a day to splash around in the AWS pool.