AA cutting Cuba flights by 25%

[eolesen]

That didn't take long...


http://www.reuters.com/article/us-american-airline-cuba-idUSKBN13R01Z

NEW YORK, Dec 1 (Reuters) - American Airlines Group Inc will cut nearly 25 percent of its flights to Cuba in 2017, a company spokesman said on Thursday, attributing the move to travel demand rather than the election of Republican Donald Trump as U.S. president.

Starting in mid-February, American, the world's largest airline, will offer one trip a day instead of two from Miami to Holguin, Santa Clara and Varadero, reducing its daily service to 10 round-trip flights from the current 13, spokesman Matt Miller said in a telephone interview.


The airline also hopes to lower capacity on three of the seven routes it operates to Cuba. It plans to use a 128-seat aircraft between Miami and Holguin instead of a 160-seater, and hopes to contract out flights to Camaguey and Cienfuegos to a regional carrier that would use 76-seat aircraft, pending U.S. regulatory approval. The regional partner is Republic Airways Holdings Inc.

 

[autofixer]

I find it hard to believe anyone would think that Cuba flights were a good idea.

 

[kirkpatrick]

I find it hard to believe anyone would think that Cuba flights were a good idea.

I think they're a good idea but the routes will have to be developed and the infrastructure in Cuba has to improve to accommodate it. Build a few resorts and Yankees will come with their money. It's close and tropical. Can't fail if they do it right.

And the ethnic travel will always be there.

MK

 

[eolesen]

Yeah, not so sure it's going to happen that quickly as long as Raul is still in charge. The infrastructure is just one aspect. Repatriating money will also be problematic (e.g. Venezuela).

There are lots of places that are close and tropical and don't require some of the extra challenges and costs, like the mandatory Castrocare healthcare policy that's being charged as a tax on the ticket for non-Cuban passengers.

 

[AirwAr]

If the airlines are able to freely operate the appropriate aircraft to match demand...I would think it would work for many of the routes.

I'm curious to know how CLT-HAV is doing comparatively...as we've discussed before, many thought it should have been used as another frequency MIA-HAV.

 

[jimntx]

If the other airlines have started service to Cuba already, how are they doing vs. AA would be an even more interesting question. As expected, I heard that MIA-HAV is doing pretty well so far. CLT-HAV not so much.

 

[IORFA]

Well Alaska hasn't even loaded theirs into reservations last I looked. They probably asked their buddy AA what our loads were on our LAX-HAV charters and got scared. The loads are beyond pitiful and we only do it weekends. At least being a charter we make money in it. Anyone know how many MIA-HAV charters we still do? I haven't looked at CLT, but the inaugural only had 60 some people on it according to the company rah rah magazine. I would assume the rest of the daily flights are the same or worse. For some reason they have it leaving so early in the morning. Seems like a 10-10:30am departure would be better. Oh, well. Maybe they want it to fail so they can try to move it to MIA or some other FL city.

 

[Hope777]

Looking at the loads CLT-HAV, this flight will be gone shortly.

 

[IORFA]

It'll last till at least the other loser flights fail to start or airlines turn their slots back. Once those are given back out and AA gets more MIA, AA will try to move it to JFK. That's my bet.

 

[jimntx]

Looking at the loads CLT-HAV, this flight will be gone shortly.

Don't be too sure. When they couldn't fill an rj on PHX-MCI, their solution was to upgrade it to a 737.

 

[jimntx]

It'll last till at least the other loser flights fail to start or airlines turn their slots back. Once those are given back out and AA gets more MIA, AA will try to move it to JFK. That's my bet.

Well, JFK would be the airport that makes the most sense--certainly more than CLT.

 

[jimntx]

Looking at the loads CLT-HAV, this flight will be gone shortly.

Checked MIA-HAV and CLT-HAV this morning for the next 9 days through 05FEB. HAV is definitely the place to go if you want to be sure you get on the airplane as a non-rev.

MIA-HAV is doing well, but not spectacular. All flights for the next 9 days have at least 100 revenue pax on each flight. However, only 1 day in that span are all flights not green on non-rev (green = wide open) and all MIA-HAV that day have gone to yellow (yellow = beginning to get tight).

CLT-HAV, however, is on life support. Tomorrow has 4 non-revs, no revenue passengers. For the entire span of days through 05 FEB, there are a total of 311 revenue passengers--average 34 revenue passengers/day--and no flight has more than 70 revenue passengers. Is this one going to AE like the Camaguey and Cienfuegos flights? How much longer are we going to continue this vanity route.? Flying empty airplanes from point to point simply for the sake of having airplanes on a route has proven to be non-productive for the financial bottom line in the past.

Anybody have any info on how other airlines to HAV are doing?