There's only one way to get more service back to PIT...

[safety stud]

For anyone that has been to the Pittsburgh International Airport, you know that it is top shelf stuff... One of the best laid out airports in the country. The problem is the past. Back in the early eighties, when the old USAir was making money, hand over fist, the company realized it needed a new airport facility to expand it's horizons. The company agreed to back a 600 million dollar bond to help fund the building of the facility. The state and local governments didn't have to shell out the enormous cash flow to help fund it. After the first Bankruptcy, the company re-niged on its responsibility for the bond. Since then the landing fee's charged for all the airlines landing in PIT are enormous. That intern makes PIT a high risk for any airline to make a profit in the city. If the state, county and local governments would agree to lower the rates and generate cash flow by other means, ie: parking fees, concessions, rent for retail establishments etc, then the costs could be lowered to make PIT a viable city once again to be used as a hub. PHL has as much capacity as it can hold. To assume it could or should handle more makes it an unwise choice. PIT can handle International Flying as good or better than any facility on the LCC property. Maybe Doug Parker should try smoozing the PA legislature a little to see what he might get... Just a thought...

 

[700UW]

I seriously doubt it is the landing fees, it is the cost per passenger which is high.

If the landing fees were high, WN would not be serving PIT.

 

[Travelpro72]

Though I agree PIT needs some int'l service back it could not compare with the new terminal and customs facility built in philly. Granted you may be slowed by delays which can be hours it's still a nice facility in itself. PIT could be used for more than it is now by US. Why would southwest and Jetblue come if it was so expensive? They MUST have noticed that there is money to be made. I think it was more planning than just throwing flights into PIT to hurt US.

 

[delldude]

landing fees went up due to U cutting service.....

 

[autofixer]

I'm not sure that is the case; however, that would be a typical governmental response to a situation. You know, like businesses pull out of an area due to the area being uncompetetive; so government increases taxes to make up for the loss in tax revenues. This only deepens the spiral straight down!

 

[delldude]

my understanding that the fees are lower when an airport has more frequency.was mentioned in the ongoing PIT/U saga..

 

[Flying Titan]

Autofixer -
Not the government's fault. Airports are required to take in enough money to fund operations. When US Airways filed for bankruptcy protection, pulled the hub out and handed back a bunch of gates - a lot of the budgeted revenue pie went away, but the expenses of running the aiport didn't. The airport had no choice but to raise its fees for the level of service that was still there.

The only way out of this mess is a lot more service or if the government bails the airport out of the massive debt load it incurred at the behest of US Airways.

With lower costs to the airlines, more service would certainly find its way to PIT, but I don't know if that means US Airways would re-hub there - or if they would resume international operations.

 

[BoeingBoy]

The "urban myth" that PIT is expensive continues to amaze me.....

Here's a simple example to illustrate what happened:

Say a gate costs $1 million per year to lease. Also say you utilize that gate a lot, serving 500,000 passengers a year with that gate. The cost per passenger is $2.

Now you decide to cut back - less utilization of that gate plus using it for RJ's instead of mainline aircraft. This results in only serving 200,000 passengers a year with that gate. The cost per passenger is now $5 - 2.5 times what it was before while paying the same for the gate.

Admittedly, this is very oversimplified but it is effectively what happened in PIT. We cut back, the airport served 1/2 the number of passengers, and the cost per passenger doubled - all without any change in the rates/fees charged.

Jim

 

[SpinDoc]

Unfortunately, US made their choice under Bugsy Seigel, and they accepted political favors and bribes from "Fast" Eddie Rendell which sealed the fate of PIT. The result is "No soup for PIT".

PHL was not, and will never be a reliable or profitable connecting hub. End of story.

 

[trvlr64]

btw.....ACAA has increased the parking fees. So that's not the answer.

 

[zethya]

Unfortunately, US made their choice under Bugsy Seigel, and they accepted political favors and bribes from "Fast" Eddie Rendell which sealed the fate of PIT. The result is "No soup for PIT".

PHL was not, and will never be a reliable or profitable connecting hub. End of story.

I'm afraid you don't know what you're talking about. PHL IS by far US Airways MOST profitable station. PIT never was(profitable).

 

[burghlaw1]

I think that slots revenue is earmarked to retire about $150 million of PIT's debt.

 

[SKY HIGH]

Why would southwest and Jetblue come if it was so expensive? They MUST have noticed that there is money to be made. I think it was more planning than just throwing flights into PIT to hurt US.

sky high states:"Quoted"
Southwest - take this to the bank - is fully aware of the situation, and is without doubt in the process of revising its traditional set - yes, set - of business models. The easy-meat markets are gone, so they have to now concentrate more heavily on taking share from other carriers, like at Denver and IAD, as opposed to relying on fare stimulation.

They surely know that their traditional product - such as the "fall of Saigon" boarding process - might have been fun for the DAL-Lubbock crowd, but it's less and less competitive when compared to what Frontier, AirTran, jetBlue, United, and the rest of the industry are offering. They also know that their labor costs need to be addressed. Some exciting labor negotiations may be in the cards.

Regarding Southwest, it's in it for the long-haul, and it's not going to be a static target for other carriers to shoot at. So plan on film at 11. Or, more correctly, film around the end of the year - there will be changes, and watch Wall Street go into a hissy-fit.

 

[Dog Wonder]

If they lower the fees in PIT how can they pay the cop who chases meemaas picking up their grandkids out of the empty arrival lanes?

 

[john john]

Why would southwest and Jetblue come if it was so expensive? They MUST have noticed that there is money to be made. I think it was more planning than just throwing flights into PIT to hurt US.

Do you think southwest and Jetblue are getting a sweetheart deal?