I live a mile from it. Theres alot of noise restrcitions in place and tons of opposition to the expansion already, so I don't ever see big passenger operations starting. But frieght is a definite.Originally Posted by St-T
I don't think that SW will do that now. But, I wouldn't be surprise if another airline(s) start passanger service at the CoCo Airport in the future.
I live a mile from it. Theres alot of noise restrcitions in place and tons of opposition to the expansion already, so I don't ever see big passenger operations starting. But frieght is a definite.
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
D/FW tickets don't always carry a premium
04:51 PM CST on Saturday, February 26, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
For years, it's been an article of faith among many North Texans that they pay more to fly.
The reasons: American Airlines Inc. has limited nonstop competition at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. And by law, Southwest Airlines Co. can only fly short hops from Dallas Love Field, where it's determined to stay.
How much more do travelers pay? It's hard to say, though any fare premium at D/FW because of the Wright amendment restrictions at Love Field appears to have shrunk significantly in recent weeks.
Also Online
Graphic: Comparing fares from D/FW and the two Houston airports (.pdf)
A Dallas Morning News sampling of last-minute domestic business fares shows it costs the same $509 to fly nonstop to Boston, New York or Seattle from D/FW as it costs to travel from Houston.
It's cheaper to get to Los Angeles or Fort Lauderdale, Fla., from D/FW than from Houston. But a trip to Phoenix or Oakland, Calif., can be a lot more expensive from D/FW.
The fares reflect new pricing put into effect last month by American, following similar changes at Delta Air Lines Inc. Business fares from D/FW are down nearly 40 percent from a year earlier.
But they also came as D/FW and American are seeking to fend off any changes to the 25-year-old Wright law.
In November, two months after Delta announced it was closing its D/FW hub, Southwest dropped its long-held neutral position on the limits, which restrict carriers from flying beyond nearby states from Love Field.
Dallas-based Southwest now says the law is anti-competitive and inflates airfares in North Texas.
RICHARD MICHAEL PRUITT/DMN
American cut its business fares from D/FW nearly 40 percent after Delta slashed its flights from the airport. "This is our home base, and we have thousands of customers who want access to our fares, but we are geographically shackled at Love Field," said Southwest spokesman Ed Stewart.
"Those former Delta customers in the metroplex want to go to a lot more states than where the Wright amendment limits us."
Southwest says the math is pretty simple: Fares drop where it flies, and the Wright amendment handcuffs the carrier from offering service from Love Field to top markets throughout the country.
The carrier's most expensive fare is $299 one-way: American has lowered its one-way fares generally to $499, but with many exceptions of $699 each way.
Southwest has stacks of research showing lower fares where it adds service. Advance purchase fares in Philadelphia dropped as much as 80 percent on routes Southwest entered last year.
But executives at Fort Worth-based American say the debate boils down to a public policy issue about the region's airports: If Southwest wants to fly around the country from North Texas, it should move to D/FW.
"The Wright amendment has never been about airfares," said Scott Nason, American's vice president for revenue management. "Southwest is trying to make it about fares by their refusal to move to D/FW and compete."
Searching for the Wright amendment premium is difficult because airfare data changes often and is easily manipulated.
Each of the thousands of routes from D/FW has dozens of fares for sale. The exact timing of a purchase can wildly affect average fares and conclusions.
The U.S. Department of Transportation makes airlines randomly pick 10 percent of their fares to create a chart.
In the most recent report covering the third quarter of 2004, D/FW fares for long-haul flights had a "fare premium" over other airports of 30 percent, the fourth-highest such premium in the nation.
The data can be somewhat misleading because of how airlines such as American priced business tickets before the Delta fare cuts. Airlines made most of their profits by charging walk-up business fares that were four or five times the average advance-purchase fare.
Just a few high-end business tickets can skew the average fare much higher, even if the more common advance-purchase fares are competitive with other airports that have far fewer business travelers.
High business fares
Even after the latest fare cuts, D/FW still is an expensive place to fly compared with other major commercial hubs when just business fares are measured, said Bob Harrell of New York-based Harrell Associates.
D/FW last-minute fares have dropped 39 percent from last February, based on Mr. Harrell's data.
But for medium- and long-range trips, D/FW's cost per mile flown ranks at the top or just behind other high-fare airports such as Pittsburgh and Minneapolis/St. Paul International. The cheapest airports are ones where Southwest dominates, such as Las Vegas and Phoenix.
"This is why American Airlines doesn't want Southwest operating on its routes," he said.
Handicapping whether the Wright law will change isn't easy. Both airlines and D/FW Airport officials are lobbying in Washington, but no bill is pending.
Even though any fare premium at D/FW would be most pronounced for business travelers, North Texas' biggest corporations have been largely silent on the Wright debate.
"The corporate community has always sat on the sidelines," said Bernard Weinstein, an economist at the University of North Texas who has studied the effects of the Wright amendment since it was enacted.
"A lot of them have corporate discount agreements with American, and they don't want to say anything," he said.
Smaller businesses can't get those kinds of deals from major carriers.
Deborah Driskill flew two airlines on a trip from Dallas to Palm Desert, Calif., this month to save $500 for her consulting company.
"We just have to be very conscious of cost because we're often paying for it ourselves," said Ms. Driskill of CDG & Associates of Carrollton, where any ticket over $600 gets bought with frequent flier points.The travel managers at large companies that could benefit from lower fares to North Texas are aware of the Wright amendment but don't have time to get involved, said Kevin Mitchell of the Business Travel Coalition, which represents large corporate travelers.
Still, the lower fares on American in recent weeks helped Dallas in a recent pitch to planners in New York, said Phillip Jones, chief executive of the city's Convention & Visitors Bureau.
"It's a strong selling point," he said, following a period when high airfares to D/FW scared off some conventions.
The well-documented "Southwest Effect" that dramatically lowers average airfares and in most cases doubles the number of travelers on specific routes has been blunted in North Texas.
Southwest's dozen nonstop routes from Love Field have forced American and others from D/FW to effectively match prices to cities including Albuquerque, Houston and New Orleans.
Meanwhile, discounter AirTran Airways Inc. has been beefing up its D/FW service, forcing American to match those fares.
But that leaves dozens of top nonstop routes from D/FW, where the world's largest carrier faces competition only from other airlines that require passengers to connect through their hubs.
Dallas vs. Houston
The News compared Dallas and Houston fares because Southwest officials have said the schedule at Houston Hobby airport would serve as a template for Love Field without a Wright amendment.
In a comparison of walk-up business fares Southwest sells out of Houston to what American sells out of D/FW, Southwest underprices American to the same cities by an average of $363.98 each way.
Some of Southwest's flights included stops, while all of American's service was nonstop.
Without knowing its exact schedule out of Love Field, Southwest was reluctant to comment on how much it would save travelers over American's similar fares from D/FW.
Studies in the early 1990s pegged the Wright premium at between $100 million and $200 million a year, but those figures don't reflect the most recent fare cuts by American.
American says its average fare from D/FW is affordable compared with other hubs – particularly since the price drops last month.
American, with more than 80 percent market share at D/FW, admits it charges more for its nonstop flights because many business fliers are willing to pay a premium, Mr. Nason said.
Tennessee activists
Last fall, business leaders in Tennessee who thought airfares to D/FW were too high initiated an effort in Congress to allow flights between their state and Love Field.
After discussions with American officials, walk-up fares between Nashville and D/FW fell sharply.
"We didn't want to see customers defect," Mr. Nason said, adding that the price drop wasn't in reaction to the Wright amendment discussion.
In response to American's prodding to move to D/FW, Southwest says it doesn't want to split its North Texas operations or abandon its headquarters, maintenance bays and training facilities at Love Field.
Unless the law changes or Southwest has a change of heart about D/FW, a stalemate will endure that frustrates local activists such as David Glick of Dallas, who continues to write to members of Texas' congressional delegation on the issue.
"The powers that be don't seem to care about the flying public," Mr. Glick said. "I don't think it's become a real cause for some of these businesses because it doesn't hit them where they live."
Staff writer Suzanne Marta contributed to this report.
E-mail etorbenson@dallasnews.com
This is the update from keepdfwstrong.com -- what a waste!
March 2, 2005
DFW International Airport and the North Texas Commission wanted to provide you with the most recent news regarding the Wright Amendment:
AVERAGE FARES DROP AT DFW
DFW International Airport is committed to providing low fares for the traveling public. According to data recently released by the Department of Transportation, average fares at DFW have declined, even without the presence of Southwest Airlines. Click here to read the full article on average fare drops at DFW.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
In a recent letter to the editor of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, a Keller resident states, "Today, D/FW Airport is in an unprecedented state of development and improvement, and it's just as important to protect that investment now as it was 25 years ago." Click here to read the full letter of support for the Wright Amendment.
In another letter, a Grapevine resident comments, "Let's strengthen the good thing we have and not dilute the economic power of D/FW to the self-serving interests of one company." Click here to read the complete letter published by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
SENATOR JOHN CORNYN COMMENTS
Click here to read the latest comment from Senator John Cornyn.
Thank you for your continued interest and support.
I hope whoever wrote that was kidding.
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
Which proves that it's all a political game. AA and its puppet D/FW are becoming the poster children for corporate welfare.
The Keller resident probably moved here from Noo Yawk in the last five years, and I'm sure a quick look through the S-T archives would turn up some choice comments from other Grapevine residents who see the airport (and its expansion, including flight lines over the city's schools) in a different light.
I thought that Republicans were all about free enterprise and limited federal government? Oh, I forgot, that's only when it doesn't involve their own campaign contributors.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
John Cornyn has surprised me by showing up on the 700 Club and bashing gays with Pat Robertson -- I thought he was a sober, logical type but he has succumbed to the nutty fringe I'm afraid.
"DFW International Airport is committed to providing low fares for the traveling public." HA HA HA...
"...even without the presence of Southwest Airlines" okay, like, does this statement imply that everyone is slap-happy stupid?!?! It only takes a casual review of one month's headlines and a thimble full of understanding to conclude the simple mention of direct competition from Southwest resulted in lower average DFW fares. For whom, exactly, is this comment intended if not those only acknowledging "news" issued from AA and/or DFW?
Even without the presence of Southwest Airlines at DFW, the average fares at DFW will decline even futher once long haul flights are allowed at Love Field. I really dont know what's the problem with DFW and AA - Love Field can handle maybe 200 more flights a day? and only on the smaller planes?? The volume lost to Southwest would be more than overcome from the increased DFW volume prompted by lower ticket prices. Whatever.
Yeah, its a damn shame what DFW officials are doing for AA and this outdated Wright Ammendment. As I said, in the
" DFW becoming premier airport" Thread, I'm sick of DFW and AA insulting consumers intelligence with this ridiculous notion that the Wright Amendment is needed. As they discuss this nonsense, ATL expands their International Terminal to 38 gates, while Houston expands its International Terminal and adds more International carriers. Maybe, DFW needs to get dropped on its head and loose more new carriers with this foolishness. DFW airport officials and the some of this Neo-Nazi "Senators" just don't get it.
Dallas Love Field and more so DFW are perfectly located for expansion NOW
1. Siphon International carrier business from overcrowded O'Hare and ATL
2. Create Love Field as a centrally located regional hub
I was in Dallas all week and happened to read this editorial in Thursday's Dallas Morning News.
Ron Ricks: Texas wins when airlines compete
Thursday, March 3, 2005
By RON RICKS
In 1967, Southwest Airlines tried to launch an idea to make air travel affordable to everyone, not just the wealthy. But competitors sought to litigate Southwest out of business before we ever operated a flight. The courts refused to let them succeed, but it took 51 months to become airborne, nearly bankrupting Southwest in the process.
That was just the beginning.
After the U.S. Supreme Court said yes to Southwest, the "D/FW parties" began another cycle of legal and political harassment. Airlines were indicted for their anti-competitive activities against Southwest. The Dallas City Council made it a crime to fly from Love Field. But, after another trip to the U.S. Supreme Court, the attempts by the D/FW parties to force Southwest out of Love Field were declared illegal.
Then Congress used Southwest as the model for the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 because the rest of the country wanted what Texas already had.
Deregulation scared those who preferred a past when high fares were protected by the government. Courtroom defeats and a national policy favoring competition over government regulation gave the D/FW parties two options: They could compete or they could go back to Washington and seek protection. They chose the latter.
The D/FW parties arranged to have an amendment passed in the House that banned interstate service from Love Field. The U.S. Senate refused to go along with this raw power play and forced a legislative compromise, which became today's Wright amendment. Its only purpose is to protect D/FW Airport and the airlines that serve it from competition.
The Wright amendment effectively cut North Texas out of the Airline Deregulation Act, depriving North Texas of the service and price benefits enjoyed elsewhere.
The rationale was that D/FW Airport was a fledgling enterprise. If this rationale was ever valid, no fair-minded person can assert that D/FW is in need of protection today. The second-biggest and the third-busiest airport in the world can – at 31 years of age – stand on its own two feet.
When American's buildup at D/FW is finished, it could have as many as 1,000 daily operations. In contrast, Southwest will have but 117 daily flights at Love Field – down from a peak of 145. Love's decline is due to the fact that Southwest cannot adjust to the changing marketplace conditions. The Wright amendment forbids it. By law, Love Field can only offer short flights, those most affected by reduced demand after 9-11.
Southwest is becoming smaller in Dallas while growing elsewhere. While Dallas benefits enormously from Southwest's success outside Dallas, Southwest cannot benefit from being in Dallas, in spite of being the city's fifth-biggest taxpayer.
Southwest's unique business model has made us the only consistently profitable airline in the world. Our adversaries know that the best way to bring us down is to force us to change that model, as moving to D/FW would do. Just as it makes no economic sense for American to operate from both D/FW and Meacham Airport in Fort Worth, it does not make sense for Southwest to operate from both Love Field and D/FW.
Dallas has a master plan to limit gate capacity at Love Field to ensure that Love can never become a viable threat to D/FW. But even that governmental protection isn't enough for some D/FW parties, who now say that they will seek to destroy the master plan rather than rely upon it. Meanwhile, they jointly spend millions of dollars to hire a legion of lobbyists to thwart competition and confuse the public.
And to what worthy end?
If competition were permitted in North Texas, D/FW Airport would be the principal beneficiary. As fares decline, D/FW will get more passengers. And more people will come to North Texas with more money to spend for both business and pleasure.
Competition and freedom of choice may be better for the consumer, but apparently not for the D/FW parties. What's best for the D/FW parties is supposed to be what's good for North Texas, whether the rest of us like it or not. But does anyone doubt what the outcome would be if North Texans could vote; i.e., decide for themselves?
The carriers serving D/FW Airport have been protected from Southwest's competition since 1979, while Houston has flourished with lower air fares generated by two competitive airports. If the Wright amendment should not be changed after 26 years of protection of the D/FW airlines, when should it be changed, after Southwest Airlines has dwindled away?
If not now – when?
Ron Ricks is senior vice president of Law, Airports and Public Affairs for Southwest Airlines. His e-mail address is wrightamendment@wnco.com
Link
I think he has a good point about the master plan. Why not rely on the Love Fireld Master Plan to ensure that DFW remains the premier airport for the region, rather than trying to eliminate/change it? If you destroy the master plan and end up allowing Love Field to have more than 32 gates, that will just take more traffic away from DFW. As it is now, DFW doesn't want any long-haul traffic diverted from DFW to Love Field.
And in other news, It was reported in the Dallas Morning News today (Friday, March 4) on Page 9D of the Business Section:
Tampa airport backs dropping Wright law
If a bill calling for the repeal of the Wright amendment is introduced in Congress, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co. can count on support from a major Florida airport that the discounter serves.
Officials from Tampa International Airport voted unanimously Thursday to support any Congressional effort to eliminate restrictions on long-haul flying from Dallas Love Field.
LoneStarMike
Interesting reading between the lines.
SWA's head lawyer talks in one breath about how the city can't restrict Southwest's operations, then in the next he talks about the "Master Plan". This tells me that repealing Wright is just the first step. Once that's out of the way, the Love Field Master Plan is going to be his next target.The Dallas City Council made it a crime to fly from Love Field. But, after another trip to the U.S. Supreme Court, the attempts by the D/FW parties to force Southwest out of Love Field were declared illegal.
...
Dallas has a master plan to limit gate capacity at Love Field to ensure that Love can never become a viable threat to D/FW. But even that governmental protection isn't enough for some D/FW parties, who now say that they will seek to destroy the master plan rather than rely upon it.
I'm definitely on Southwest's side in this debate, but it's useful to note that selective application of facts isn't limited to either party.
Oh, and this one almost had me laughing out loud:
Wouldn't that be a hoot -- if AA wants to complain about Love and threaten to start flying from there again, why aren't they making plans to jump into Meacham? Or is this a way of laying the groundwork for Southwest to start direct flights from FTW (that's the official designation of the airport)?Just as it makes no economic sense for American to operate from both D/FW and Meacham Airport in Fort Worth, it does not make sense for Southwest to operate from both Love Field and D/FW.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
Man, one fight after the next. Even if the amendment gets lifted, then it will go to Master plan, then international flights, then...ugh.
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
Southwest and the City of Dallas have stated numerous times that the MasterPlan will stay in place. The current terminal does not have a large enough customs area to support int'l flights. And, w/ 2 runways and VERY limited space there are GEOGRAPHIC limitations to Love Field.
...Don't get all freaked out! =)
How will that hold up against AA?
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
I'm sure AA will try and challenge it but it was approved by the FAA. So, let them try. I think the biggest factor is that there is not any land to develop around the airport. So, AA can try everything they want but there just isn't any room. And, I can promise expansion plans will be shot down fast.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...ght.3368a.html
Waiting for bill on Love Field
American VP expects Wright legislation, but nothing is filed yet
11:49 PM CST on Thursday, March 17, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
WASHINGTON – American Airlines Inc.'s top lobbyist said Thursday that he wouldn't be surprised to see federal legislation introduced to change flight restrictions at Dallas Love Field.
Southwest Airlines Co. has been lobbying legislators in recent weeks to lift the Wright law, which limits most commercial service from the airport to nearby states.
"Eventually they're going to find somebody who's going to do it for them," said Will Ris, American's senior vice president of government affairs. "But it's a long way from having a bill offered out there from having some changing legislation being enacted," he said.
An effort last year to add Tennessee to the list of states Southwest can serve from Love Field died at the congressional session's end.
Southwest, which wants to offer nationwide service from Love Field, says the Wright law is anti-competitive and inflates airfares in North Texas.
No bill is imminent, said Southwest spokesman Ed Stewart.
"That's what we're working towards," he said. "We're meeting with lawmakers, and lawmakers will have the final say."
American and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport strongly oppose any changes to the 25-year-old law, which they say would weaken service in North Texas as more traffic would shift from D/FW to Love Field.
American has other legislative priorities it would like to devote more time to – such as lower taxes on carriers and creating laws that would allow American to keep its pension plans.
"The fact that we've had to spend so much time and energy and resources focusing on the Wright amendment is immensely frustrating to us because of the magnitude of the other issues facing us," Mr. Ris said.
Dallas uber alles
This is pretty good news indication, hopefully they'll vote to end the Amendment soon. American doesn't sound so confident it will continue.
That just almost brings a tear to my eye. Poor American, imagine them having to allocate resources to defend the right to monopolize air service out of DFW.
This put a smile on my face, but still not counting my chickens before they hatch. I typically hate skeptism, but this is one issue I remain skeptical until Southwest does win the fight.
Meanwhile in other news...... wondering if any of this changes AA perspective on Love Field?
FAA warns of soaring air traffic
More flight delays
11:47 PM CST on Thursday, March 17, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
WASHINGTON – Think air travel is crowded and delay-plagued today?
JOHN F. RHODES/DMN
D/FW International Airport is one of the country's busiest. But the FAA says air traffic is growing, and without new investment, the nation's air infrastructure may not be able to keep up. You haven't seen anything yet.
Using their strongest warnings yet, officials from the Federal Aviation Administration predicted Thursday that air travel demand will quickly outpace the record set in 2000.
That will strain the nation's airports and air traffic control system, virtually assuring more flight delays as soon as this summer, officials said at the FAA's annual forecast conference in Washington, D.C.
Travel has come back from the shock of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
By 2015, one billion passengers will board planes domestically each year; whether the system can handle that, officials said, depends on how money is invested in aviation infrastructure today.
Overall passenger traffic in 2004 was 2.2 percent below the level in 2000, but traffic has spiked at certain U.S. airports.
Flight delays at major airports were up 58 percent over 2003.
The busy East Coast corridor is particularly prone to delays and traffic-management problems.
The FAA also faces a funding crisis born of the same low-fare environment that's put the financial squeeze on airlines.
The agency is financed by a tax on tickets – and average ticket prices have been falling.
Tax income isn't expected to keep pace with passenger traffic. By 2016, the FAA estimates, ticket prices per mile flown will have dropped nearly 40 percent from 2000 levels.
"We can't pay for it all at the rate we're going," said Marion Blakey, the FAA's administrator. "We need to find a new revenue stream that's based on our actual production. There are huge demands for infrastructure."
Without new investment, the nation's air infrastructure faces gridlock, officials said.
"We have a fleeting opportunity to get this right," said Russell Chew, the FAA's chief operating officer and former head of American Airlines Inc.'s system operations control center.
More flight delays are likely, and memories of the consumer headache that came from 2000's delays will remind all parties that change is needed, he said.
The nation's traditional airlines have lost nearly $30 billion since 9-11, but airports and the FAA are facing their own challenges:
•Smaller jets. With more people flying on regional jets, the number of flights handled by airports and air traffic controllers has risen. The smaller planes also have meant lower landing fees for airports.
•Constraints on the ground. Half of the nation's top 25 airports aren't able to add runway capacity. For those where expansion is possible, building new runways takes about a decade.
At the nation's top airport for business travelers, Chicago's O'Hare International, the government has forced schedule reductions to curb delays.
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said at the conference that he has launched a program to make it easier for airports to raise passenger facility fees to fund new projects.
•Agency issues. The FAA needs to hire and train thousands of new air traffic controllers to replace retirees. And it remains under fire from industry officials over the pace and results of its technology modernization.
•Mushrooming capacity. Domestic airlines – especially low-cost carriers – will increase the nation's air capacity by nearly 5 percent this year, well outpacing most economic growth forecasts.
Falling prices
That means ticket prices will probably fall further, said analyst Gary Chase of Lehman Bros. And it means thousands more flights in the skies.
Even if record high oil prices persist, traffic should continue a steady climb, officials said, adding that a sudden retreat in energy prices would magnify the challenges.
The new flying will "have a tremendous impact" on how the FAA handles traffic, Mr. Chew said. "But my contention is that we will get it right and the different parties will work with each other."
'Micro jets'
To avoid worsening congestion in the Northeast, former People Express chief Donald Burr discussed Pogo, his "micro jet" airline concept.
Using extremely light jets that carry just a few passengers, he hopes to fly between uncongested general aviation airports and skirt the big hubs.
"We're looking forward to getting our planes certified and getting them in the air," he said.
The concept is to keep the small planes on flights of less than 500 miles and appeal to high-income passengers who want speed and convenience, and not charge more than $6 per mile flown.
But Pogo would divert only a tiny sliver of the nation's air traffic, leaving the problems of rapid growth for regulators and airlines to sort out.
American's take
For Fort Worth-based American, the performance of the nation's air traffic management system is already hitting its bottom line in Chicago after it had to pare back its schedule.
"There's a total disconnect between the way the money comes in and the way the money gets spent, though it's not just about the dollars for us," said Will Ris, American's chief lobbyist, in an interview outside the conference.
The airline would like to see the FAA use financial markets to raise money for its major initiatives, but it wants the agency to think more about acting as a business providing a service to airlines, he said.
"It's about creating a businesslike relationship between the carriers and the FAA."
E-mail etorbenson@dallasnews.com
Ironic for AA to have one lobbyist stating this position with the FAA, while another pursues a fundamentally conflicting POV regarding the Love Field restrictions.American's take
For Fort Worth-based American, the performance of the nation's air traffic management system is already hitting its bottom line in Chicago after it had to pare back its schedule.
"There's a total disconnect between the way the money comes in and the way the money gets spent, though it's not just about the dollars for us," said Will Ris, American's chief lobbyist, in an interview outside the conference.
The airline would like to see the FAA use financial markets to raise money for its major initiatives, but it wants the agency to think more about acting as a business providing a service to airlines, he said.
"It's about creating a businesslike relationship between the carriers and the FAA."
If Chicago's airports are overburdened, one logical solution would identify flight connection transactions occuring at O'Hare which could occur at FAA facilities in St. Louis, or DFW with no negative impact on the passenger. It would not be an open market action, to force a move of air traffic away from one airport, but it would make a better flight for those with Chicago as the destination.
If people are making flight connections on AA through Chicago because the ticket price is less than buying the connection at DFW, then AA should be fined for clogging one FAA facility while leaving another facility underused.
This whole thing is like watching a soap opera. We have the good guy and the 'scheming' guy.
haha
I have a similar cycle with the Love Field issue as with the Strong Mayor issue. I cannot get enough for about a week, then it makes me sick for about a week, then I cannot get enough......
It seems that the Wright Amendment will be attacked until if finally falls. But what then, will there be residule effort to re-instate Love Field restrictions? Would the arguement simply shift to modifying the current master plan?
Same here. Who knows, but I really don't see them going after the current master plan. I have always felt Southwest being a "good neighbor". So much is built up around Love Field and has been established for some time. It can be debated ( the type of developments), but I think they would be better off not challenging that issue. Now if it was AA thats a whole different matter. If AA was in Southwest position at Love Field, I could see them pushing to bulldoze everything around Love Field and displacing a ton of lower income people so they could expand their operation.
Its interesting to note that Southwest has remained in a city that has blocked the airline from expanding on its own home turf. The airline until recently just keeps quiet and operates its business not causing confrontations. Meanwhile you almost always hear of AA in the news...sometimes good, sometimes it just causes me to roll my eyes.
Last edited by slfunk; 18 March 2005 at 01:59 PM.
I would think that the capacity of Love would dictate just how much traffic will be handled out of that airport.
But on also on this issue would this solution not help out O'Hare.....ok maybe this is a stretch but letting southwest fly direct to Midway would allow for a greater number of Chicago bound passengers to reach thier destination without adding to the congestion problem at O'Hare. Granted they would not be flying American but so what.
I'd see it beneficial to Ohare to Love Field and also to our Dallas based (not Ft. Worth) airline Southwest.
Last edited by slfunk; 18 March 2005 at 02:00 PM.
The amendment is coming down, it is just a matter of time. And American will suffer when it does.
On the other hand, one should never underestimate the value of having a senator or two in your back pocket. If they want to get rid of Wright/Shelby, Southwest is going to need the best legislators money can buy.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
In the long run, I think both AA and DFW airport will benefit from lifting the destination restriction on Love Field.
After destination restrictions are lifted, short haul flights through Love Field will be hard to justify if the long haul flight become more profitable. I think this would happen. For DFW, this would represent the profitable opportunity to reconfigure part of the airport specifically to maximize short haul flights. DFW's American Eagle hub will grow.
I wonder if there is some sort of compromise agreeable to both airports and airlines which involves shifting all connecting flights to DFW airport, while inbound flights to Love Field carry only those passengers having the Metroplex as their final destination. As soon as West Metroplex air traveler volume reaches a determinable level, a similar usage for Fort Worth's Mecham Field would begin. Just a thought, Love and Mecham become the one stop domestic airports, DFW focuses on equally on inbound DFW visitors as well as passengers changing planes. With that fancy people mover and new International terminal (maybe new regional terminal), DFW and its airline customers can get some good work from the International market through the significant leverage provided by a combination of pervasive domestic connectivity as well as quick, pleasant, easy and convenient airport navigation.
Did you see Crandall/Kelleher columns? Crandall's is unintentionally hilarious. I mean the man could not see himself if he looked in a mirror. Know what that means?
He was always quite the snake.
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
No, which paper and what day?
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
March 20, 2005, 11:05PM
WRONG AMENDMENT
Southwest and American airlines are in a dogfight over flight restrictions at Dallas' Love Field, while Houstonians enjoy cheaper air fares than Big D.
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
Southwest Airlines has a history of bringing down air fares everywhere it operates, with the notable exception of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metro-plex. Due to Congress' passage of the so-called Wright Amendment 25 years ago, budget carrier Southwest is restricted from flying lucrative long haul routes beyond states adjoining Texas from its Love Field nest in Dallas.
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The restrictions might have been justified at the time in order to protect the fledgling Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and regional hub from its much smaller but more convenient inner-city rival. They also gave American Airlines, based at D-FW, an effective monopoly on long range flights from the area. As a result, American was partially protected in its North Texas market from the effects of federal airline deregulation that stimulated competition — and lower air fares — in other parts of the country.
The Wright Amendment not only shackles Southwest at Love Field, but also prohibits it from marketing connecting flights from its Dallas hub to other Texas airports, including Houston's Hobby, from which it offers cheap, unrestricted flights to major markets around the country.
Since D-FW Airport is now the world's second-largest and third-busiest aviation center, the argument that it needs protection from 32-gate Love just doesn't fly. Houston's Bush Intercontinental gets along very well despite the competition of in-town Hobby, where Southwest is expanding its operation. If D-FW Airport ever needed protection from Love's competition, it outgrew that dependence long ago.
Southwest grudgingly lived with the arrangement because it was able to dominate the market for flights among Texas population centers. After the terrorist attacks of 9-11 and the intensive security procedures instituted at airports, many Texans found it easier to drive between major cities than take commuter flights, and Southwest's business dropped. Unlike most other airlines, Southwest is showing a profit, but only because it hedged its fuel costs with farsighted investments on Wall Street. Those investments won't pay forever. Meanwhile, company officials say, the airline makes no profit flying passengers.
Southwest needs to have the Wright Amendment repealed so it can fly planes from Dallas Love to lucrative long-range destinations. American Airlines is fighting back with a brigade of Washington lobbyists and a phalanx of supportive politicians. Texas' junior U.S. senator, John Cornyn, has indicated a willingness to re-examine the Wright Amendment restrictions, but his senior colleague, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, still favors the airport restrictions.
When Tennessee legislators threatened to author a bill to repeal the Wright Amendment in order to lower airfares from that state to D-FW, American lowered its fares between Nashville and Dallas.
The Wright Amendment now amounts to political protectionism of the most blatant kind that results in many travelers out of D-FW paying double what their counterparts in Houston pay. It is not healthy to have politicians propping up one airline at the expense of others during a time when the fallout from the 9-11 terrorist attacks has brought carriers such as Continental to the brink of bankruptcy. If Continental has to compete head-to-head with Southwest, why shouldn't American? Houston would benefit from repeal of the amendment because flights, passengers, jobs and airport fees at Hobby would increase.
With Sen. Hutchison weighing whether to run for governor rather than seek re-election to her Senate seat, don't be surprised if Southwest Airlines becomes one of her biggest boosters for a campaign against incumbent Gov. Rick Perry. As long as she's in Congress, there's virtually no chance that the airline's campaign to repeal the Wright Amendment can succeed.
There's a subtext I hadn't seen before. Southwest didn't buy a lifetime supply of cheap fuel, so they've got to find ways to make money after their contracts run out. Meanwhile, AA is hoping that day comes before Southwest can gain a foothold in their stranglehold (to mix metaphors). No wonder both companies are fighting the issue tooth and nail.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
They were in the Dallas Morning News about a week ago and both editorials have been reprinted on another site:
Crandall's Editorial
Herb Kelleher's Response
LoneStarMike
^^ Thanks! Both pieces gave a great insight into the debate. And they pretty well summed up both sides' intentions. AA wants to live in the pre-deregulation '70s, and Southwest wants to compete on equal terms. Which political party was it that keeps talking about the evils of government regulation?
Oh, yeah, it's the same one that keeps shelling out the corporate welfare.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals... Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. - B. Obama 1/20/09
What a lovely threat at the end of this article....
Southwest says it's ready for 'long, hard fight'
By Trebor Banstetter
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
<!-- begin body-content -->FORT WORTH - Southwest Airlines will pursue its campaign to repeal the Wright Amendment as long as necessary, even if it takes years, the airline's top executive said Monday.
Gary Kelly, chief executive of Dallas-based Southwest, said he always anticipated the drive to eliminate the controversial amendment -- which restricts flights at Dallas Love Field -- would be a slow process.
"We knew when we got into this it would be a long, hard fight," Kelly told a group of Star-Telegram editors, reporters and editorial writers at a meeting with the newspaper's editorial board. "I don't care how long it will take, we'll keep after it until it falls under its own weight."
Kelly said he would be willing to allow the law to be gradually phased out over several years, to minimize the impact on Dallas/Fort Worth Airport and American Airlines. And he also hinted that the company might be forced to relocate its corporate headquarters to another city if Love Field remains restricted.
The Wright Amendment, approved by Congress 26 years ago, restricts flights from Dallas Love Field to adjacent states. It was later amended to include Kansas, Alabama and Mississippi.
Originally intended to protect then-new D/FW Airport from competition, the amendment in more recent years has kept Southwest -- the nation's largest low-fare airline -- from offering air service from North Texas to most of the nation.
That's because in North Texas, Southwest flies only from Love Field. The airline has rejected service at D/FW because the busy airport, which is American Airlines' largest hub, doesn't fit Southwest's business model.
Last year, Kelly broke with Southwest's long-standing neutrality on the issue and endorsed efforts to repeal the amendment, describing it as anti-competitive and out of date.
Attempts to overturn the federal law have been bitterly contested by D/FW Airport officials and Fort Worth-based American. They say the amendment is still needed to protect D/FW, which has suffered financially from the closure of Delta Air Lines' hub.
So far, the issue has gained little traction in Washington, D.C., despite lobbying by Southwest. Tennessee representatives' bill last year to allow flights from Love Field to that state died, and American apparently slowed the momentum by lowering fares between D/FW and Nashville.
But Kelly's statements Monday made it clear that the Wright Amendment issue isn't going away.
"It may take a long time," he said. The airline is willing to spend years lobbying on the issue if necessary, he said.
Ron Ricks, Southwest's senior vice president of governmental affairs, said he is working to educate members of Congress about the issue.
"Outside of a very narrow group, most people don't even know what this is about," he said. "We have an incredible learning curve."
Kelly also said he would be open to phasing the law out over time. That could help reduce the financial shock to D/FW and American.
American has a near-monopoly on long-haul flights from North Texas. Some airline analysts have estimated that the airline's supremacy here is worth as much as $500 million annually.
Financially struggling American has lost $7.3 billion since 2000, including a $761 million loss last year.
When asked what he thought about a five-year phase-out of the amendment, Ricks exclaimed, "Sold!"
But Kelly added that no one has approached the airline to discuss any type of gradual relaxation of the law.
"If we sat down to negotiate, we'd be sitting in a room by ourselves," he said.
Kelly also pointed out that Dallas may cease to be a good location for the company's headquarters if the restrictions stay in place.
Although stressing that he isn't threatening to move over the Wright Amendment fight, he acknowledged that Southwest's Love Field operation is shrinking while the airline is growing rapidly in other cities like Philadelphia and Chicago.
"Southwest is a growing company, but it's not growing in Texas," Ricks said. "The fact of the matter is, a shrinking market is not the best site to have a corporate headquarters."
Southwest's stock (ticker: LUV) rose 2 cents Monday to close at $14.20 per share.
By the power of greyskull!
I dread the thought of a long, hard fight. The eventual end of this fight will come with either the closure of Love Field or lifting of destination restrictions at Love Field.
Can Metroplex residents have an option to vote on this issue? It may be an unactionable vote as far as directly changing the law, but it could be something upon which neutral Federal Reps could base their vote, and a mandate for Metroplex Feds to follow.
^We kinda already have an option to vote on this issue. You can vote for the politicans who best identify with your standing on the Wright Amendment and push for those politicans to do something about it once they're in office.
By the power of greyskull!
hahaha, your kidding right? Kay Bailey is supposed to be Republican (pro business, hello?) and support competition, FREE enterprise, yet she sided with AA.
"And we will probably be judged not by the monuments we build but by those we have destroyed."-"Farewell to Penn Station," New York Times Editorial, October 30, 1963
Again, if you don't agree with the person currently holding office, vote for someone who IDENTIFIES with your point of view next time there is an election. You don't like Kay Bailey Hutchinson's stance on the Wright Amendment? Don't vote for her. It's really that easy!
BTW, Kay Bailey Hutchinson IS a Republican and as a fellow pro-business Republican, I can't explain her stance. However, if she reads this forum, it would be great for her to come on here and explain her decision.
By the power of greyskull!
I don't really think it is that easy. Most people have platform priorities higher than the Wright Amendment. Do you really think anyone has a chance against a Republican incumbent around here?
Last edited by Lakewooder; 29 March 2005 at 08:22 PM.
I certainly think that the Wright Amendment should be lifted but the number of flights out of Love should be limited. Perhaps make some conditions that proctect the neighbhorhoods around it. Then, try to make incentives for private and corporate flights to go out of Red Bird/Dallas Executive. We need to make sure we don't chase off SWA. The are a source of jobs and economic development for the area.
there are already conditions that protect the surrounding neighborhoods. i tihnk that's pretty much a non-issue, though AA and DFW would like us to think it's major...
If you haven't done so, participate in the poll: http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=3611
Yup, there are conditions and I think there is a document that all parties agreed to. So, why not lift the Wright Amendment? Maybe see if our lawmakers in DC can lift it and add some more conditions to help protect the area.
So I guess having Delta pack up and leave and granting AA an even bigger monopoly position at DFW is paying off for them. Now if they could just get rid of that pesky problem over in Dallas.
Reports propel AMR
Its revenue outlook and a Merrill Lynch upgrade lift shares 11%
11:40 PM CST on Wednesday, March 30, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
Maybe those lower business fares on American Airlines haven't been such a drag on revenue after all.
Shares of parent AMR Corp. surged 11 percent Wednesday on the strength of the Fort Worth-based company's better-than-expected revenue projections and on an upgrade from Merrill Lynch.
AMR rose $1.10 to $11.03 as 14 million shares traded hands, four times the average volume in the last 30 days.
The company said in a regulatory filing late Tuesday that its first-quarter revenue from all its seat miles flown would rise as much as 4.5 percent from last year's first quarter.
American's hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport appears to be helping its performance, especially since Jan. 31, when Delta Air Lines ended the vast majority of its flights there.
Delta's "de-hubbing" is allowing American to absorb many of the Atlanta-based carrier's customers and gain pricing power, said Merrill analyst Michael Linenberg, in a note to investors Wednesday.
American lowered its business fares in January, in response to a similar move from Delta.
AMR chairman and chief executive Gerard Arpey said last week that although the new fares have hurt revenue, the effect generally has been offset by several factors:
•Lower fares have brought back some customers who were flying low-cost rivals.
•More passengers are buying business- and first-class tickets.
•The airline has reworked all its corporate contracts to have smaller discounts on tickets.
Not everyone's optimistic that the industry has turned a corner, however. Oil prices remain well above $50 a barrel. "The industry's fundamentals are still terrible," said Brian Hayward, analyst for Zack's Investment Research.
E-mail etorbenson@dallasnews.com
So, does this invalidate claims by DFW Airport & AA that Delta's departure will strike a serious blow to airport and airline revenue?
I want to hear it again from the DFW and AA alliance that the airport would not be able to pay its facility improvement bills resulting from the combination of Delta's departure with filght destinations competition from Love Field.
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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=4><HR width="97%" color=#cccccc SIZE=1></TD></TR><TR><TD width=15 rowSpan=7></TD><TD>Posted on Fri, Apr. 01, 2005</TD><TD width=15 rowSpan=7>
Arpey: AA would be hit hard
By Trebor Banstetter
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
<!-- begin body-content -->FORT WORTH - A repeal of the Wright Amendment would cost American Airlines hundreds of millions of dollars a year in revenue, which would hit the financially weak airline hard, the company's chief executive said Thursday.
Gerard Arpey, CEO of Fort Worth-based American, acknowledged that the airline has a lot to lose if Congress eliminates the federal law, which bars long-haul flights at Dallas Love Field.
"It would certainly have an adverse affect," he said during a meeting with the Star-Telegram's editorial board.
Arpey also vowed that if the law is eliminated, American will go to court if necessary to overturn restrictions on growth at Love Field. The airline would then develop a large connecting hub there, which could include international routes -- shifting numerous flights from D/FW along the way.
And he suggested that if lawmakers are going to consider eliminating the Wright Amendment, they should also consider closing Love Field entirely to commercial traffic.
"Closing it would be a more favorable move, from a public policy standpoint, than getting rid of the Wright Amendment," he said.
The amendment, enacted 26 years ago, restricts flights from Love Field to adjacent states. It was later amended to include Kansas, Alabama and Mississippi.
It was intended to protect Dallas/Fort Worth Airport from competition.
But last year, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines began lobbying to get the amendment overturned. Southwest operates from Love Field and not D/FW, so American has a near-monopoly on long-haul flights from the Metroplex.
Southwest executives refuse to operate at D/FW because they say the busy airport does not fit their business model. They say the amendment is out of date and anti-competitive, and argue that fares will drop substantially at both airports if they are allowed to fly longer flights from Love.
Attempts to overturn the federal law have been bitterly contested by D/FW Airport officials, who say it would hurt the airport when it is already reeling from the closure of Delta Air Lines' hub this year.
So far, no bill has been introduced in Washington to repeal the Wright Amendment, and Arpey said it's uncertain whether one will come forward this year.
But Arpey made it clear that American has much to lose in the battle. The airline, the world's largest, has lost $7.3 billion since 2000, including $761 million last year.
As its "fortress hub," D/FW is American's most profitable airport. Some analysts have estimated the value of the Wright Amendment protections at several hundred million dollars annually -- a number that Arpey supported Thursday.
"There is a lot at stake," he said. "American is the largest employer in North Texas."
He would not speculate whether a Wright Amendment repeal would push American back toward bankruptcy. But he pointed out that the airline is grappling with high fuel prices and intense competition from low-fare rivals.
"Things are tremendously challenging right now," he said.
Arpey pointed out that many of American's frequent fliers live closer to Love than to D/FW. The airline could risk losing those passengers if Southwest were able to fly long routes.
"We'll cede Lubbock, but not LaGuardia," said Dan Garton, American's executive vice president of marketing.
That would entail shifting a lot of flights from D/FW to Love. Garton speculated that other airlines would want to shift flights from D/FW to Love as well.
The city of Dallas's master plan for Love Field limits that airport to 32 gates and about 183,000 commercial flights annually, about twice what it now handles. To accommodate an American hub, the airport might need to grow substantially beyond those limits, Arpey said.
"I'm not saying that to be punitive or a threat," he said. "That simply reflects where our passengers are."
He added that American "would do everything possible to invalidate the master plan."
Henry Joyner, American's vice president of planning, said, "We would fight tooth and nail with every weapon we have to get in there."
Southwest officials have said they will fight to keep the master plan intact. Any move to eliminate it would also be hotly contested by neighborhood groups around Love Field, which strongly oppose any airport expansion.
Arpey said it would be better to ban all commercial flights at Love Field.
That would force Southwest to move to D/FW, he said and guarantee the larger airport's stability. "That's as much of an option as a full repeal," he said.
He added, however, that American is not actively pursuing a Love Field closure.
Garton pointed out that other cities, such as Denver and Austin, have closed secondary airports to support a larger one.
Arpey said that American wouldn't have agreed to the $2.7 billion plan to create a new international terminal and passenger shuttle train at D/FW if it had known that the amendment might be overturned.
"Shame on us, I guess, for not making sure it was locked down," he said. "But no one thought this would become an issue again."
Stock in AMR Corp., American's parent (ticker: AMR), closed at $10.70 per share, down 33 cents. Southwest stock (LUV) finished at $14.24, down 16 cents.
<!-- end body-content --><!-- begin body-end --><HR class=tagline color=#cccccc SIZE=1>Trebor Banstetter, (817) 390-7064 tbanstetter@star-telegram.com
ONLINE: American Airlines, www.aa.com
Southwest Airlines, www.southwest.com
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I still don't get why we should be protecting a single airport from competition. Chicago has O'Hare and Midland. DC has multiple airports, NYC has multiple airports. Why shouldn't Dallas? Granted, the City of Dallas isn't as big as these other cities, but the DFW metroplex which has to utilize and share DFW airport is extremely large. We can easily support 2 airports.
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