Why is RDU-SJC is not starting?

[RDUSWF]

Does anyone know why after announcing 1x daily non-stop service between RDU and SJC, that AA will not be flying this route?
I believe that this would be a good use of otherwise sitting assets (red-eye). The nerd bird would be a hit for the local techies, especially since they would be able to utilize their AAdvantage program.
This is a huge disapointment for me since I will have to continue to connect through STL or DFW or god forbid ORD.

 

[coolflyingfool]

This is only pure speculation, but didn't WN just start BWI-SJC n/s service. And with the F100s being parkerd at a much earlier date and higher rate than anticipated, did some route frequency have to be cut back or eliminated? I am not sure at all. I will go to bed now.......

 

[RDUSWF]

Yes, you are correct WN did start SJC-BWI n/s. To me, that is not an alternative. Bad enough, I have to fly coach at least half the time, now imagine WN "class". I will pass on the "cattle-car", and so will most of the techies.

 

[Management Guru]

I don't know how RDU has been doing, but SJC passenger counts for the first 11 months of 2002 were down by over 16% from the same period in 2001. Even though WN started SJC-BWI I think the airlines are still looking at SJC with a bit of caution until the numbers improve. [BR][A href="http://www.sjc.org/AboutSJC/activity/CYNov02.pdf"]http://www.sjc.org/AboutSJC/activity/CYNov02.pdf[/A]

 

[sfb]

I imagine that RDU-SJC isn't happening for the same reason that BOS-AUS was discontinued, BOS-RDU has gone all-RJ again, BOS-SJC has seen a cut in frequency, and most West Coast service from SJC has gone to ERJ's -- the tech industry is still in the toilet. The big venture capital/IPO-funded travel budgets are a thing of the past with the dot-com bubble having burst. SJC, the closest airport to Silicon Valley, seems to be down to about three dozen daily mainline departures on AA. The morning AUS-HOU-LGA flight was cut. AA's passenger numbers at AUS (as a barometer of tech-related travel) are still down by roughly 10% compared to 2000 figures. There aren't enough nerds with travel budgets right now to make the nerd bird worth flying.

WN still operates one-stop, no aircraft change service RDU-MCI-SJC. That likely limits how much AA could charge for a non-stop RDU-SJC flight.