...and PHX begins the shrinking

[bob@las-AA]

Bob what are you talking about? YOU have under 10 years. And having spent 12 of my 22 year career at DFW I can honestly say most of us stunk at sending non mixed flights all over the World.

I think DFW even won a trophy once for lack of sortation? God we were so so horrible.

I figured you would bite, I complained my 2nd year in, then I learned to adapt,

9 years 2 months and 21 days

 

[bob@las-AA]

See. You just admitted it. DFW still stinks.

Most definitely, DFW sucks at sending un sorted trips to the other hubs, to the down line stations,.... oh well!

 

[AA89]

Once again a thread hijacked by rampers with a personal issue. Great job guys.

 

[robbedagain]

we have heard rumors PHX is not taking in transfers for the time being as 3 of our guys wanted to transfer there but PHX told them there is a freeze there as theyre gonna lose around 50 60 flights in August Can anyone confirm if this is true? 2 of the 3 guys have accepted SEA though the third one is holding out and he is a lead but he would also step down to FT Ramp if opening were to come about

If this is true then the shrinking begins

 

[strangiatotheme]

we have heard rumors PHX is not taking in transfers for the time being as 3 of our guys wanted to transfer there but PHX told them there is a freeze there as theyre gonna lose around 50 60 flights in August Can anyone confirm if this is true? 2 of the 3 guys have accepted SEA though the third one is holding out and he is a lead but he would also step down to FT Ramp if opening were to come about

If this is true then the shrinking begins

The only reduction appears to be the usual cut every year when Flex ends. It's about 35 flights. Again, it happens every year; last year the cut was around 40 flights. And before Jester suggests it again, through September there isn't any notable swapping of capacity from Mainline to Regional.

Comparing peak days between July and the end of August, DFW and MIA lose about 20 flights transitioning off of the summer schedule; LAX about 10; PHL, CLT, and ORD stay roughly flat.

The 50-60 numbers probably come from looking at the "no-op" days. For example, CLT sees a difference of about 50 flights between a Saturday and a Monday in September.

 

[strangiatotheme]

And is it asking too much for bag handles and bag tags to be facing up or out in the bin?

C'mon, you know that's asking too much when it involves expending thought and effort for the benefit of downline employees.

 

[robbedagain]

thanks for the explanation our PHX flex is operated thru out certain times all year round after the cuts when does PHX usually pick back up?

 

[strangiatotheme]

thanks for the explanation our PHX flex is operated thru out certain times all year round after the cuts when does PHX usually pick back up?

Flex usually operates around major holidays and busy travel periods like the month of March (the single busiest month in PHX) and in the summer from early June until mid to late August. The "normal" mainline flight schedule sits between 150-170 flights depending on day of week (has been this way for nearly a decade), and Flex can push that up to around 205.

September/October are two of the slowest months in PHX, so the flight schedule is adjusted accordingly. It picks back up somewhat in late October/November and then goes all-out with Flex around Thanksgiving and also about a week before Christmas until about a week after New Years.

 

[Jester]

And before Jester suggests it again, through September there isn't any notable swapping of capacity from Mainline to Regional.
.

I mean just because AA has now assigned Express flying to all or in part between PHX-AUS/ONT/BUR/ABQ/ELP/SAT/IAH/TUS shouldn't be cause for concern. Not like these cities are SGU, IGM, ROW, MRY or SBA or anything.

Carry on!

 

[Albert]

[Q

I mean just because AA has now assigned Express flying to all or in part between PHX-AUS/ONT/BUR/ABQ/ELP/SAT/IAH/TUS shouldn't be cause for concern. Not like these cities are SGU, IGM, ROW, MRY or SBA or anything.

Carry on!

If they were going to de-hub they probably would have got rid of those cities altogether. Envoy is opening a crew base in MIA, should MIA be worried?

 

[strangiatotheme]

I mean just because AA has now assigned Express flying to all or in part between PHX-AUS/ONT/BUR/ABQ/ELP/SAT/IAH/TUS shouldn't be cause for concern. Not like these cities are SGU, IGM, ROW, MRY or SBA or anything.

Carry on!

With the exception of IAH (a Star hub), AA has had little to do with the loss of mainline flying to those stations. And TUS...really? I'm sure people are desperately clamoring for a mainline experience for the whole 20 minutes that flight is in the air. Let's compare July 2011 to this upcoming July:

PHX to	2011	2017
AUS	5x Express	2x Mainline 3x Express
ONT	5x Mainline	4x Mainline 2x Express
BUR	4x Express	3x Express
ABQ	5x Express	6x Express
ELP	5x Express	6x Express
SAT	1x Mainline 3x Express	3x Mainline 2x Express
IAH	5x Mainline	2x Mainline 2x Express
TUS	10x Express	9x Express

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

In the case of ABQ, AUS, BUR, ELP, SAT, and TUS, what mainline flights were really lost? I know you can go back to the pre-recession years and make that case, but then again, that was pre-recession...

 

[Jester]

I wish I had your database to pull-up old flight schedules...

And I know it has been awhile as PHX is thankfully becoming a distant memory for me, but I recall some issue several years ago when a passenger was over served booze on a flight in ABQ which lead to vehicular homicide of a 3rd party. It issue became if New Mexico should have the ability to pull the liquor license of US Airways while flying inside of its state borders. I thought that was a mainline aircraft. I also question the IAH 2011 data on regionals as I recall one major CF on an IAH flight back around that time, it was an Airbus. You can point to UA having a hub in IAH as to explain AA regional flying, but how many AA regionals are flying into UA's SFO hub from PHX? Exactly zero!

Furthermore, notice how PHX has been offering fewer number of flights into some cities. In particular, the midwest (OMA, DSM and MKE come immediately to mind) which shouldn't be surprising as ORD and DFW probably takes away some of that flying. Without a doubt, the largest increase percentage of AA PHX flying has been through regional lift, which I provided links on this thread a few months ago.

 

[jimntx]

[Q

If they were going to de-hub they probably would have got rid of those cities altogether. Envoy is opening a crew base in MIA, should MIA be worried?

They've probably come to their senses and realized that some of the Caribbean islands do not warrant mainline service. The amount of traffic to/from MIA does not support even A319 flying.

They closed the SJU Eagle hub because it was no longer needed. SJU was needed because most of the islands had airports that were too small and had too short of runways to support mainline a/c. Now, they all have runways that can land a 747, but that doesn't mean they have enough passengers on a daily basis to support that 747.

I'm guessing they've decided that--particularly off-season--that an Eagle flight or two each day is sufficient for some of these islands.

That being said, I don't think MIA mainline has anything to worry about. Larger islands in the Caribbean plus South America can keep them busy, off the streets, and out of trouble. They may even be planning some sensible scheduling, like mainline a/c when warranted--holidays, Spring Break, etc-- otherwise, an Eagle service.

 

[strangiatotheme]

I wish I had your database to pull-up old flight schedules...

And I know it has been awhile as PHX is thankfully becoming a distant memory for me, but I recall some issue several years ago when a passenger was over served booze on a flight in ABQ which lead to vehicular homicide of a 3rd party. It issue became if New Mexico should have the ability to pull the liquor license of US Airways while flying inside of its state borders. I thought that was a mainline aircraft.

I think this was the case with ABQ as the change over to Express happened pretty quickly. Want to say it was in 2010. I believe there were at least two separate incidents of pax being over-served and then driving (one resulting in a fatality) and that the liquor license was actually revoked.

I also question the IAH 2011 data on regionals as I recall one major CF on an IAH flight back around that time, it was an Airbus. You can point to UA having a hub in IAH as to explain AA regional flying, but how many AA regionals are flying into UA's SFO hub from PHX? Exactly zero!

Furthermore, notice how PHX has been offering fewer number of flights into some cities. In particular, the midwest (OMA, DSM and MKE come immediately to mind) which shouldn't be surprising as ORD and DFW probably takes away some of that flying. Without a doubt, the largest increase percentage of AA PHX flying has been through regional lift, which I provided links on this thread a few months ago.

IAH in 2011 was all Mainline flying, so I'll give you that station. The point about it being a Star hub mostly has to do with the fact that right around the time US exited Star, the flights started being pared down. There's probably more in play there too regarding the state of the oil industry over the last few years. IAH has seen better days. Also, SFO is in the top 10 in O&D destinations from PHX, while IAH is not.

I'm sure this isn't the same story, but I recall an incident with IAH involving an A319 and an improperly loaded HR in the taper. It had leaked all over the bin floor and the bottom stack of bags. I believe DGS at the time was handling our flights there. A certain portly ramper-turned-manager, who I've heard works for Swissport now, insisted that the inbound ramp crew were the ones who had to clean the cargo bin and also deliver the fluid-soaked bags to the claim belt. Never heard how that was resolved exactly.

OMA and MKE have been pretty consistently 2x Mainline for as long as I can remember. OMA may have had an Express flight here or there. DSM until a few years ago had been 2x Express. However, DSM, MKE, and OMA are all currently served twice daily with Mainline. And in the time since the merger, MEM was restarted and was actually upgauged from a CRJ-900 to an A319.

 

[Jester]

A certain portly ramper-turned-manager, who I've heard works for Swissport now, insisted that the inbound ramp crew were the ones who had to clean the cargo bin and also deliver the fluid-soaked bags to the claim belt.
.

Diablo?

OMA and MKE have been pretty consistently 2x Mainline for as long as I can remember. OMA may have had an Express flight here or there. DSM until a few years ago had been 2x Express. However, DSM, MKE, and OMA are all currently served twice daily with Mainline. And in the time since the merger, MEM was restarted and was actually upgauged from a CRJ-900 to an A319.

I could have sworn I recall seeing 3 or more mainline flight daily into OMA and MKE, and until recently there were regional jet consistently, as well. And yes, it was a pleasant surprise to see MEM get upgraded to a A319, especially given the distance.

Only other question would be the 2011 year you used as the merger was proposed, but not officially approved until February 2013 (I know because I got divorced the same month as AA and US were married). I understand that one needs to pick a date somewhere, but when does the impact/influence of merged operations come into play? Wasn't there a 3 year (maybe 5 year) agreement not to reduce PHX service after the merger was approved? Seems that would be a better starting point as the 3 years has passed.