Southwest to Add In PIT
- Thread starter hack73
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DesertFA66
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- Nov 12, 2006
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Southwest coming into PIT doesn't help the situation in PIT, :angry: it hurts it. Did you listen to what they have said about PIT? Its not a money maker for US. IT sounds like PIT is going away as a base, thats what I read into it. 
Watch the PIT townhall and you'll see what I mean. I"m so sorry about what has happened there, maybe it's time to look at a backup plan. I'm so sorry. 
Watch the PIT townhall and you'll see what I mean. I"m so sorry about what has happened there, maybe it's time to look at a backup plan. I'm so sorry. 
Pacemaker
Senior
- Sep 3, 2002
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California...intra-Florida...Kansas City focus city...BWI....I remember someone several years ago commenting that the end game for usair would be two DC-9's shuttling back and forth between BOS and DCA until finally WN found a way to fly even that last-stand market.
Take a look at the cost per seat mile to run a short-haul regional airline in the busiest and costliest airspace and airport in the US. 16 cents. It's astronomical. There's no way this airline can compete on costs so the only answer is to run. At the peak of the boom times the airline can make money off the temporary very high yields on a few northeast routes; the minute the economy begins to weaken the party always ends for usair. I can't see how tacking on the America West route structure and upper management team is going to make it any different in the coming downturn. Hope I'm wrong this time.
Take a look at the cost per seat mile to run a short-haul regional airline in the busiest and costliest airspace and airport in the US. 16 cents. It's astronomical. There's no way this airline can compete on costs so the only answer is to run. At the peak of the boom times the airline can make money off the temporary very high yields on a few northeast routes; the minute the economy begins to weaken the party always ends for usair. I can't see how tacking on the America West route structure and upper management team is going to make it any different in the coming downturn. Hope I'm wrong this time.
leprechaun
Senior
OH GOD! another PIT thread.
Lots of posters here make it sound like USAir actually has a choice about PIT (and actually had a choice about BWI). When a competent low-fare, low-cost airline moves to town, lowers fares dramatically and garners thousands of passengers, the old dinosaur has little choice but to retreat to other markets not yet invaded by that successful competitor. Sorry to say it, but two full-size hubs in the same state separated by one-hour flights doesn't make much sense for such a small airline. PIT has the perfect hub airport but not the O&D. PHL has the O&D but not the hub airport facilities. That conundrum helped contribute to the two bankruptcies.
wings396
Veteran
- Aug 20, 2002
- 3,672
- 1,122
The BWI hub was on the chop list the day of the PI/US merger, just as DAY was. We heard many times how BWI was too close to PHL, and that DAY and PIT were as well. Their theory was the having 2 hubs that close to each other led them to compete against each other, which does make sense. Prior to the merger in 1989, they just wanted everyone to be happy, so they said that all of the Hubs would remain intact. While I do agree that US should have kept BWI as a large station instead of handing it all over to WN, keeping it a Hub wasn't feasible. I do think that US should have kept PIT as a Mini-hub to avoid running all of the traffic thru the black hole in PHL.
Now both PIT & DAY are gone........ :blink:
Now both PIT & DAY are gone........ :blink:
Dog Wonder
Veteran
The same can be said for the entire West network.
Jimmy Neutron
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- Dec 2, 2005
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Boy----isn't that the truth------Our boy Dougweiser talks out of both sides of his mouth-----Hey if we can't run unprofitable routes according to Dougweiser then we should be pulling down the unprofitable west coast service and putting those planes on routes where there is money to be made----Hey I'm just repeating what Dougweiser has been saying about PIT---My god, he's making a big deal out of PIT's supposedly very small number of unprofitable flights and then he lets the entire west coast operation run unprofitable here-----Am I missing something?
Travels2mch
Veteran
That's because dougweiser is drinking from the same keg as the 3-4 bashers on this board. We should lure them all on a (post config'd) 321 with lots of taps, and launch them off all together to the sahara desert (would they notice any difference??), and let them start their own colony. Then bring someone else in who has a brain and can run an airline (no need to replace the bashers).
Jimmy Neutron
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- Dec 2, 2005
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That works for me!
PHX PHLyer
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- Nov 22, 2006
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Why do people act like stopping DEN-LAS service is some kind of big deal....or something that shows how pathetic they are or something like that. DEN-LAS has UA (well....TED), F9, WN, and at the time US. Have you seen the volume of flights.....the fare wars.....the extreme competition....who cares if you drop DEN-LAS......it is SO not even a big deal. LAS is a hub....but a relatively small and not as important as others. DEN is a large hub for UA. DEN is a large (well only) hub for F9. LAS is the largest station for WN. It's not like abandoning PHL-CLT or something like that.
Southwest has stopped PHL-BDL. They will stop PHL-OAK, LAX. They are pulling out of PHX-CLE. They are decreasing service in a bunch of other markets with direct US competition. The last few route announcements or route shakeups left no real gains in US markets.....mostly reductions.
jetBlue has stopped flying PHX-BOS.
AirTran will stop flying PHL-BOS.
The list goes on....if it is not profitable....don't fly it.....US is not the only one that stops flying on a route that has other competitors on it.
It just seems that I have seen multiple times on this board recently that US pulled out of LAS-DEN and that it was some kind of utter embarrassment or failure or something like that. But all I can say is WHO CARES?!?!? Suck up your pride....at least US is able to do that for the sake of the company
Keep in mind, the "OLD US AIRWAYS" left PIT, not the new. The new management team had nothing left with PIT, once US pulled away all of that service.
They are holding the door open for SW, come on in!
Parker said "The city did a really nice job of getting a lot of competition in, which is good," he said. In fact, the new competition "makes it easier" for US Airways to cut back."It is not as if we reduce 10-15 flights that means the community won't have service," he added.
