Reply With Quotehttp://cbs11tv.com/video/?id=23048@ktvt.dayport.comOriginally Posted by DFWCRE8TIVE
^Hell no... not until 8 years and/or the full Wright Amendment is lifted.
http://cbs11tv.com/video/?id=23048@ktvt.dayport.com
American's Love Field operation losing customers
American Eagle struggles to get customers for Dallas airport flights
09:06 AM CST on Thursday, December 13, 2007
By TERRY MAXON / The Dallas Morning News
tmaxon@dallasnews.com
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...d.2af6fd7.html
American Airlines Inc. says it remains committed to providing service out of Dallas Love Field.
But apparently its Love Field customers, with the option of only two destinations on regional affiliate American Eagle, aren't quite as committed.
A Dallas Morning News analysis of passenger traffic at the Dallas airport indicates that American Eagle flights there were barely one-third full in November. Overall, American Eagle flights were nearly three-quarters full.
While American spokesman Tim Wagner would not confirm The News' figures, he did not dispute them. He said the carrier doesn't discuss the fullness of flights – known in the industry as load factors – at its airports.
However, he acknowledged that filling seats on the Love Field flights has been a challenge, with American and/or its American Eagle regional carrier competing against Dallas-based Southwest Airlines Co.
"We're going to continue to work on improving the consumer awareness of our schedule and our traffic at Love Field," Mr. Wagner said.
"But it's difficult competing against a carrier that has really been entrenched there for 30 years," he said. "That's something that we've acknowledged all along. Just like anybody competing against an airline with a fortress hub, a term people like to use, the entrenched carrier at Love Field has a large schedule and a large network – and that's what we're up against."
According to Flightstats.com, an Internet service that provides information on flight completions and delays, American Eagle operated 838 flights in November to and from its two Love Field destinations: Austin and Kansas City, Mo. Using 50-seat Embraer jets, the flights provided 41,900 seats for the month.
The Dallas Aviation Department says American Eagle boarded or deplaned 14,865 passengers in November. That total means the average flight filled 35.5 percent of its seats, or about 18 passengers on every 50-seat jet – almost enough to give every customer his or her own row.
Using U.S. Department of Transportation data, aviation consultant Michael Boyd found much the same results as The News. Looking at the 12 months ended July 31, Mr. Boyd said, the American or American Eagle flights to and from Austin averaged 38 percent load factors.
During the same period, Southwest's Dallas-Austin flights filled 71 percent of their seats.
In the Dallas-Kansas City market, American had 45 percent of seats filled, compared with Southwest's 77 percent.
In two Love Field markets since abandoned by American – St. Louis and San Antonio – American fared no better.
American averaged 43 percent load factors on its St. Louis flights, compared with 68 percent for Southwest. To and from San Antonio, American averaged 40 percent to Southwest's 71 percent.
"They're having their heads handed to them," said Mr. Boyd, president of the Boyd Group of Evergreen, Colo. Despite what American officials have claimed, Mr. Boyd said, Love Field "is not the preferred airport" for American's customers.
Strange doings are not unusual in the Love Field market, which carries some heavy political baggage.
History of Wright
A federal law known as the Wright amendment limits airline service out of Love Field. The law, passed in 1979 to protect Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, originally said airlines could not provide direct or connecting service from Love Field to any point beyond Texas and four contiguous states.
In 1997, Congress added Kansas, Mississippi and Alabama to the Wright amendment perimeter.
Over that same time period, Southwest Airlines, based out of Love Field, grew from an upstart Texas carrier to one of the biggest and most-feared competitors in the nation.
It always declined to fly out of the much-larger D/FW Airport. That effectively insulated American from the low-cost competition in its back yard, at least on long-distance routes.
But in 2004, Southwest officials for the first time began to actively lobby for repeal of the Wright amendment, arguing that it was an unfair restraint of trade.
As part of its argument against the repeal, American officials said they would be forced to go heavily into Love Field, increasing congestion in the skies over Dallas neighborhoods.
In late 2005, Congress added Missouri as a Wright amendment destination state. In response, American returned to Love Field to launch new service to Kansas City and St. Louis, following Southwest's lead.
American's regional affiliate, American Eagle Airlines Inc., also launched flights to Austin and San Antonio out of Love Field.
In June 2006, Southwest, American, the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth, and the D/FW Airport board agreed on a compromise to settle the long-festering dispute over Love Field service.
That deal, passed by Congress and signed into law by President Bush in October 2006, allows carriers to offer service to cities beyond the Wright amendment perimeter – initially with one-stop or connecting service passing through airports inside the perimeter and, after October 2014, with nonstop service to anywhere in the United States.
Since then, average load factors on Southwest flights to and from Love Field have jumped by between 3 percentage points and 8 percentage points, Mr. Boyd said.
"They got what they wanted," he said, referring to Southwest.
Speaking to an investment conference last week, Southwest chief financial officer Laura Wright referred to Love Field as "a shining star in our route system all of 2007."
Even if American did want to turn Love Field into a major operation, the 2006 compromise would not allow it to do so. The deal gives American only two gates out of 20 at the airport.
Last April, American pulled its jets out of the Dallas airport. American Eagle and a regional partner, Trans States Airlines Inc., began providing all the service to the four cities from Dallas.
Then, in September, the carrier stopped service to St. Louis and San Antonio and increased service to Austin and Kansas City, with all flights flown by American Eagle.
Still, the strategy isn't working.
With 34 percent load factors, "they're losing money on those routes," said Darryl Jenkins, another aviation consultant. "There's no doubt about it."
Losing money
Mr. Wagner of American acknowledged that flights with low load factors do lose money.
"But for an airline, it's not unusual, when you're entering a market, to lose money," he said. "It's a process of educating customers and winning customers away from other airlines. In that light, you could say Love Field is a microcosm of the airline industry."
Nothing is forever in the airline industry, particularly with crude oil prices exceeding $90 a barrel, Mr. Wagner said.
"But we're in Love Field right now, and we're going to try to make that work," he said.
Mr. Boyd suggested that American should end service at the Dallas airport and concentrate all its North Texas efforts on its D/FW Airport hub.
"They backed themselves into a corner, and they have to get out of it, be graceful and leave," he said.
Mr. Jenkins, a Virginia-based consultant, said American may be staying at Love Field, despite the pain, because it wants to hurt its rival.
In the airline industry, "every time I hear them say they're doing it for strategic reasons, I presume they're saying they're losing money so they can screw people," Mr. Jenkins said.
AT LOVE FIELD
Here's a summary of American Eagle's operations at Love Field in November.
Destinations: Austin and Kansas City
Flights: 838
Seats available: 41,900
Passengers: 14,865
Percentage of seats filled: 35.5%
SOURCES: Flightstats.com; Dallas Aviation Department; American Eagle; Dallas Morning News research
^Isn't it obvious the only reason AA uses the gates at all is to prevent Southwest or anyone else from getting their hands on them and offer services that competes with their DFW service?
This should really anger the AA employees that took significant pay cuts. AA management has been running a money losing operation at Love Field that's costing the organization tens of millions. Then that management team turns around and gives itself a bonus for brilliant management and tells the front line employees that it can't afford to pay them any more.
I think there's some logic behind this gate squatting. If you assume Southwest would take AA's gates, they could offer more flights to more destinations (especially after 2014) that would more directly compete with AA at DFW.
Moreover, AA is preventing jetBlue or others (NWA or expressjet) from entering the market and competing against AA to other destinations like NYC. Is this bad for competition? Of course, but less competition is good for AA (and for any airline in the industry in some markets).
Once AA divests Eagle, how would they hold on to them? Eagle will not have the deep pockets to maintain a losing operation and bringing AA full cost structure to hold the gates would likely increase the losses. I assume that's why they shifted to Eagle.
Eagle pilots are now saying that the APA contract at American prohibits any flying that is not to or from a hub by any airline that is not wholly owned by AMR. That would mean that Eagle would have to stop flying about 250 flights of their 1,700 including all of their flights at Love Field. At least its going to save them a lot of money.
While all that Geographic Puffery has been taking place in another thread, the most important legislation to pilots in almost 50 years has sailed through both houses of congress and been signed into law by President Bush. The age 60 Rule granted as a favor to AAmerican has finally been repealed effective at it's signing.
http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/gener...nt%20Age%20Act
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
Southwest Brings 171 Soldiers Home for the Holidays
Last update: 11:00 a.m. EST Dec. 21, 2007
DALLAS, Dec 21, 2007 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Southwest Airlines will fly 171 Texas Army National Guard soldiers from North Carolina to Texas on Sunday, Dec. 23. The 436th Chemical Company of the Texas Army National Guard is stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, waiting for deployment to Afghanistan. They recently got news that their deployment has been delayed, so now they are able to spend the holidays with their families, and Southwest Airlines is making it possible! The soldiers will arrive in Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio on Sunday courtesy of Southwest. Southwest Airlines Employees and Customers will be alongside their families to welcome home the soldiers!
"Southwest Airlines is happy to be able to grant this Christmas wish for these troops to reunite with their families," said Southwest Airlines President Colleen Barrett. "We are so proud of what these soldiers are doing for our country, and we are blessed to give back."
When the troops' scheduled departure to Afghanistan was delayed, the Commander said the soldiers could go home for the holidays if arrangements were possible for every soldier. Families scurried to raise money to fund everyone's trip to Texas, but were unsuccessful. Southwest Airlines learned of the effort and stepped in to offer flights to all 171 soldiers!
"The support and generosity of Southwest Airlines is an unbelievable blessing to our soldiers and their families," said Dora Cortez, member of the 436th Chemical Company's Family Support Group. "Many of the children haven't asked for Christmas presents this year; they simply want their daddies home."
Southwest Airlines is proud to support our troops. The airline has more than 700 of its own family who serve in the National Guard and Reserves. Southwest Airlines has gained recognition for its commitment to these Employees. In 2007, Southwest Airlines was named one of the Top 50 Military Friendly Employers. Also, Southwest Airlines was recognized by the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) in 2003 for its commitment and support of the airline's Employees who serve in the National Guard and Reserve.
Full story at:
http://www.marketwatch.com/News/Stor...0A}&siteid=nbs
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
"Southwest Airlines is happy to be able to grant this Christmas wish for these troops to reunite with their families," said Southwest Airlines President Colleen Barrett. "We are so proud of what these soldiers are doing for our country, and we are blessed to give back."
American Airlines next to last in on-time arrivals
11:38 AM CST on Thursday, January 3, 2008
By TERRY MAXON / The Dallas Morning News
tmaxon@dallasnews.com
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...s.6c6fca1.html
One in every five flights on U.S. airlines arrived late in November, a result that was still an improvement from October and the same period a year earlier.
The U.S. Department of Transportation said U.S. airlines had 80 percent of their flights arrive on time in November, up 3.5 points from November 2006 and 1.8 points from October 2007.
However, Fort Worth-based American Airlines Inc. came in 19th out of 20 carriers who report their results to the federal government finishing just ahead of United Airlines Inc.
American saw 75.6 percent of its flights arrive within 15 minutes of schedule, down 1.3 points from November 2006. United posted a 75.5 percent record, down 3 points.
Dallas-based Southwest Airlines finished fifth among the 20 carriers with a 84.5 percent on-time record, up 1.1 points from a year earlier.
The overall leaders were Hawaiian Airlines, 92.4 percent, and Aloha Airlines, 91.6 percent. Among the nation’s 10 largest carriers, Delta led the pack with 85.6 percent, followed by Southwest.
The Department of Transportation said that the 20 carriers received 4.89 reports of mishandled baggage per 1,000 passengers in November, down from 6.32 reports in November 2006.
Worst among the carriers was American Eagle Airlines Inc., which had 9.24 reports per 1,000. Best was JetBlue Airways Corp. with a rate of 2.95. Southwest ranked 10th with 4.56 reports, while American finished 11th with 5.36 reports per 1,000.
Aloha finished best in the industry on consumer complaints, receiving none in November, while US Airways brought up the tail with 2.26 complaints per 100,000 passengers. The industry average was 0.99 complaints.
Southwest finished third with 0.24 complaints per 100,000, while American ranked 16th with 1.15.
JetBlue bumped 0.01 passengers per 10,000 through involuntary “denied boardings,” best among the 20 carriers, with Atlantic Southeast Airlines the worst at 4.11 passengers per 10,000. American ranked sixth at 0.61, while Southwest placed 12th with 1.15 passengers per 10,000.
With DFW airport further losing ground to the other 2 major airports in numbers of landings and takeoffs served and with the price of a barrel of oil reaching $100, we should be thankful just to arrive safely on a plane. Could someone please . . . PLEASE . . . send notifications to all those impatient bosses out there to give us a break? Thank you. Also, could the few people out there complaining about arriving late also give us a break? I know that there does exist a lot of germs in the closed confines of an airplane that could cause infections when passengers have to wait for hours in their seats because of delays. But it could be worse. You could be a patient in a hospital. So try to relax. Take it in stride. Have a drink or 7. Take this opportunity to relate and bond with your community.
An American Airlines apologist.
Tighten the female dog!
What are you talking about? DFW just completed a record breaking year.
Irregular, unpredictable airline operating schedules impose millions upon millions of dollars of expense on the national economy in the form of lost productivity, needless expenditures on hotel rooms and rental cars, missed opportunities, etc.
American Airlines to test anti-missile system this spring
12:44 PM CST on Friday, January 4, 2008
Associated Press
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...te.6dfb9b.html
Up to three American Airlines jets will be outfitted with anti-missile technology this spring in the latest phase of testing technology to protect commercial planes from attack.
An American Airlines spokesman said Friday that the test will determine how well the anti-missile system holds up under the rigors of flight.
The first Boeing 767-200 will be equipped in April or later, said the airline spokesman, Tim Wagner. American operates that Boeing model mostly between New York and San Francisco and Los Angeles.
American said it is "not in favor" of putting anti-missile systems on commercial planes but agreed to take part in the tests to understand technologies that might be available in the future.
The technology is intended to stop a missile attack by detecting heat given off from the rocket, then firing a laser beam that jams the missile's guidance system.
The device on the belly of the Boeing 767-200 aircraft will be operational but won't be tested on regular flights, Wagner said. The use of a signal to mimic a missile attack has already been tested in the air, Wagner said.
American, the nation's largest carrier, has been working with defense contractor BAE Systems PLC on the project for a couple years. In 2006, BAE installed its hardware on a Boeing 767 that wasn't used to fly paying passengers.
About a year ago, reporters were invited to American's maintenance base in Fort Worth to see a jet outfitted with the laser-jamming device on its belly.
"We are now entering the next phase," Wagner said, which is "to see how the system holds up on an aircraft in real-time conditions – weather, continuous takeoffs and landings, etc. – and to test its maintenance reliability."
Wagner said American is also collecting more information on how the laser-jamming device affects fuel consumption.
Congress has approved funding for anti-missile research partly out of fear that terrorists armed with shoulder-fired weapons could hit jetliners as they take off and land. U.K.-based BAE won a contract from the Homeland Security Department to test its technology.
Fort Worth-based American, a unit of AMR Corp., has said anti-missile defense is best handled by stopping terrorists from getting missiles that could shoot down commercial jets and by improving security around airports.
Not true.
"Coming in third was Dallas-Fort Worth International, with 686,711 flights in 2007, 2.3 percent less than its 2006 flights."
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7009606177
Look, how long is the Metroplex going to be happy with DFW airport marketing itself as just a big thing that attracts millions of people? When considering it is operating now at the bottom of its potential having lost about as much business as it can to Denver and Houston, after Delta quit serving the airport, even a small percentage of growth by the airport should be considered a disappointment.
The problem with judging performance at DFW is that it is an unfathomable task. Most are just happy with the airport serviing millions of passengers regardless of whether it is growing or not. What they don't realize is that the numbers have serious consequences on the overall health of the Metroplex economy. People should be concerned right now when the airport either doesn't grow or does so slightly. Especially since, as I pointed out, the business at the airport has shrank down to about as far as it is ever going to.
DFW airport is supposed to be comparable to Hartsfield and O'hara. But the big engine that DFW is to the Metroplex just isn't working for the Metroplex as Hartsfield is for Atlanta or O'hara is for Chicago. Instead people in the Metroplex seem happy with the idea that the airport is more of a competitor with the airports in Denver or Houston.
When an engine doesn't work in a Porshe there still exists a problem with the overall vehicle regardless of how fast the car goes. There is tremendous potential for growth at DFW airport even beyond the trickle of success that it is sputtering out right now.
In my opinion the big dog isn't hunting for the Metroplex even when compared to the airports in the smaller markets of Denver and Houston.
Isn't this a good reason to have airlines based again at the hubs? Hopefully this will be how things work out again in the future to the benefit of DFW airport. The problem with considering so called lost productivity is that it is only one aspect of what airlines focus their expenditures on. Another focus is safety. The danger in considering the abstract economics you use above is that airlines would balance the benefits of safety with that of improving convenience for passengers. Safety and security are not inconvenient aspects of the airline business but necessities.
Want to know why AA and UA on time ratings are so bad?
EWR, LGA, LAX, ORD, LGA
Wonder what Southwests on time rating would be if they served the same airports?
Just as bad!
Take a look at Table 9 of the Jan report.
Five Categories for delays:
Canceled
AA 545
WN 572
Air Carrier Delay
AA 3150
WN 3378
Extreme Weather Delay
AA 290
WN 279
National Aviation System Delay
AA 4770
WN 2824
Late Aircraft Arriving Delay
AA 3704
WN 7971
Wo what sticks out here?
American is hampered by its hub system but even with the advantages that Southwest has with airports they still have more late arriving flights than AA yet the averages are better for Southwest since they report more flights. Imagine how skewed the numbers could be in American's favor is AA and MQ were reported together.
Another interesting Tidbit that the media fails to report on is that of Denied Boardings. Southwest beats AA in both categories Voluntary and Involuntary denied boardings.
From January 2007 to November 2007
Voluntary
AA 60186
WN 71455
Involuntary
AA 5156
WN 8934
And yet Southwest gets fewer complaints I have a hunch why that is, but it is better left unsaid.
Last edited by PuddinHead; 06 January 2008 at 03:28 PM.
True, but passenger counts were up, PFCs were up, airport revenues were up, and the airport ended up with a record surplus.
In other words, yes, there was less flight activity, but this was more than offset by increased passenger loads and the ancillary revenues associated therewith.
This is not surprising, as it reflects AA's overall strategy, which has been to shrink the airline but run higher loads.
Passenger counts had better be up considering the airport really can't shrink any more. A record surplus for the airport doesn't mean a thing for the metroplex considering it is sitting on top of what is believed to be the largest gas field in North America. If the airport isn't out there marketing as best it can against the likes of IAH in Houston and DIA in Denver for the estimated 600,000 plus millionaires in the southwest, then the overall economy of the Metroplex will suffer.
I strongly disagree that DFW airport is doing well. The marketing game the airport plays is intentionally softball when compared to other major airports. What the airport really does big time is serve the interests of American Airlines and its 2 owner cities by branding itself as the same old myth -- as just a big, fat airport in the middle of the major city of Dallas and the less than major one of Fort Worth. All one has to do is listen to the other marketing departments at apposing major airports to realize what DFW truly is.
In the meantime, the other more aggressive airports of Hartsfield and O'Hara are lights out taking care of the best interests of their respective metropolitan areas while its all DFW airport can do to keep from getting eaten alive by the 2 lessor airports in Houston and Denver.
What really pisses me off about southwest is how they hold a plane for one or two people. My flight a few days ago was delayed 45 min so we could wait for one person. Granted it is nice if you are that one person, yet the rest of the plane is not so happy.
When considering the rotten politics that is creating a poor market for airline service in the DFW metroplex, Southwest airlines should be considered just 1 of the many worms in the overall can. Also adding their slimey presence to the can are American Airlines and the 2 owner cities of DFW airport -- Dallas and Fort Worth. To all this large juicy bait, the added minor worms of the city of Irving, the FAA, the state of Texas and the usual corruption at DFW airport together help create the overall proverbial wriggling mass.
Rather than discard all these worms, the better solution would be for them to realize that they would be fatter off economically if they wiggled together to the benefit of the Metroplex as a whole instead of to the benefit of their own singular best interests.
Last edited by MisterNifty; 08 January 2008 at 01:58 PM. Reason: spelling and tweaking
^ignore Ignore Ignore
This thread was created with the premise that Southwest Airlines is competing somehow with American Airlines. In actuality, the 2 airlines are working with the 2 owner cities of Dallas and Fort Worth to the benefit of the 4 together. In the meantime, the DFW airport is falling further behind the big league airports of Hartsfield and O'Hara while it is having its lunch eaten by the lessor airports of IAH in Houston and DIA in Denver in regards to serving the estimated 600,000 plus millionaires in the southwest region.
So, this is a business which should be taken seriously because it directly effects DFW's economy.
Last edited by MisterNifty; 09 January 2008 at 12:00 AM. Reason: Edit out nonsense
Southwest Airlines may expand Denver service
04:22 PM CST on Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Associated Press
Southwest Airlines has scheduled a news conference for Wednesday and is expected to announce an expansion of its Denver service.
Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly will be joined for the announcement by Mayor John Hickenlooper. Southwest spokeswoman Marilee McInnis declined additional comment Tuesday.
The airline said Denver is one of its fastest-growing cities with 56 daily flights, up from 13 when it launched service in January 2006 at Denver International Airport.
Dallas-based Southwest competes with United and Frontier airlines at DIA, an aggressive battle which has benefited customers by forcing lower fares.
Tighten the female dog!
Most likely that person was crew/pilot for Southwest Airlines they needed for another flight at your destination. Southwest is not know for holding flights for regular pax. They could care less.
Both the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth are handcuffed as headquarters to both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines respectively. So each has to kneel to the wishes of each company or they might bolt to elsewhere. At the same time, each city is the owner of DFW airport. All of this together goes far beyond just the classic conflict of interest. It has become a rotten political can of worms which is eroding away the airline industry from the DFW metroplex. This is just one example above.
Yes you are correct, although at first this one almost made a few valid points, but has now simply started inventing crap just to add to the noise level. This now makes two irrational noise makers on my ignore list, lets hope the other sensible folks here join us.
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
If I'm not mistaken, seems Southwest Airlines plans on expanding Denver International Airport significantly as its base of operations. If I'm also not mistaken, Southwest Airlines does not operate out of DFW airport and can't expand any further at Love Field. This means that Southwest Airlines is going to be cutting deeply into the airline market of the DFW Metroplex in the future. So, do you have a plan on how to make them pay for such a policy, Mr. Sanity, or are you just happy complaining about crazy people?Yes you are correct, although at first this one almost made a few valid points, but has now simply started inventing crap just to add to the noise level. This now makes two irrational noise makers on my ignore list, lets hope the other sensible folks here join us.
Okay, here is what I'd do to reverse the trend that is eroding airline business from the DFW Metroplex:
First I'd encourage the city of Dallas to say goodbye to Southwest Airlines. The importance of DFW airport to the Metroplex and to the city of Dallas far exceeds that of Southwest Airlines so if it wants to leave the area, which the airline seems to be doing with this decision, then make them pay.
I'd suggest the city of Fort Worth to say goodbye to American Airlines likewise. The importance of DFW airport likewise far exceeds that of American Airlines. If the airline can't take any new competition at the airport, which is vital for the health of the Metroplex as a whole, then let the airline also leave the area. The influences of both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines having headquarters here have combined to cheat the DFW metroplex area by eroding airline business from DFW airport.
I'd allow DFW airport loose to market itself as the masterpiece it truly is. Most marketers from other major airports know the advantages that DFW airport has over all the other major airports in North America.
While one advantage is its central location in North America and at the middle of the metropolitan are of DFW, the other is the development that has grown up around the airport as a result of an incredible infrastructure of freeways built to serve it.
Last edited by MisterNifty; 09 January 2008 at 12:06 AM. Reason: Tweaking
MisterNifty, it is not about benefitting airports, it is about benefitting customers. And customers like SWA and the convenience of Love Field.
Besides, what is wrong with having several airports? New York is served by 3 airports, London is served by 3, Tokyo has 2 airports, and Paris has two airports. These cities are global players more so than Denver or Houston or Atlanta...and gasp...DFW.
Tighten the female dog!
Which is exactly the point. The Metroplex doesn't have a true need for multiple airports (yet) aside for passenger convenience (which I appreciate). DFW has the capacity to handle all of the region's air travel needs for years to come. Some would argue that it's ill-advised to fragment the market, preclude direct competition, create inefficiencies and spend public funds on two airports (security, ATC, etc.) when both are not needed.
Of course this is moot, since Love will not be closed, and we likely will have a true need for the facility in the future.
Look, this is a political can of worms that has nothing to do with having 2 airports.
I will agree with you that both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines make business decisions based on their own selfish interests. While American Airlines thinks on an international level while not taking into account the health of the Metroplex, Southwest Airlines does likewise on the national level. The health of the Metroplex depends on state and municipal governments after all.
It appears to me that both of these companies are going to ride the DFW area to death before jumping off once the resources dry up and the area is left with a trickle of an airline industry. Proof of this future phenomenon happening is being revealed as a policy now being implemented by Southwest Airlines who seems to be the first to make the decision to jump off the rotting corpse of the Metroplex in favor of the frozen tundra of Denver International Airport. After having taken full advantage of its position of being based in the Metroplex, Southwest Airlines now seems ready to abandon it.
Likewise, American Airlines has used its position of being based in Fort Woth to keep an unfair advantage at DFW airport. How can it be in the best business interests of American Airlines for DFW airport to expand the numbers of airlines serving its terminals? As the city of Fort Worth is half owner of DFW airport, American Airlines is based in Fort Worth and the vast majority of the traffic at DFW airport is being handled by the airline. This recipe for failure here is why the Metroplex has strangled itself in regards to competing with other major airports on the international, national and regional levels.
How can anyone deny that this has happened?
There maybe mergers on the horizon, and potential bankruptcies nationally that will affect service for the DFW area more so than 2 airports.
The Airline industry itself is less than free-market place regardless of airport or location. Airline bail-outs come to mind. So if you are going to be indicting AA and SWA for mercantilistic practices, you should go ahead indict other airlines as well.
But that fact still remains, if SWA and Love Field are sooo God awful, nobody would be flying from there. But customers like SWA and Love Field.
And you keeping talking about how IAH is eating DFW's lunch, how come IAH and Hobby can coexist, for that matter O'Hare and Midway?
Tighten the female dog!
IAH and Hobby exist totally within the city limits of Houston. O'Hare and Midway also exist totally within the city limits of Chicago. If the surrounding area of DFW airport was located within the city limits of Dallas, then the airport would be the busiest in the universe. I say this because then the city of Dallas wouldn't be competing against itself like it is now with the cities of Irving (Las Colinas) and Grapevine (Gaylord Resort.) The way the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth compete against the surrounding locations of the DFW area is by trumping them as the owner cities of the airport. They can do this by influencing the way the airport markets itself. This marketing has always been to brand the area as the major city of Dallas on one side with the less than major city of Fort Worth on the other with the really big, fat airport in the middle. For some reason potential tourists from around the world are supposed to buy into this concept.
The busiest in the universe? I doubt it. Unless American routed most of its flights through DFW like Delta does for Atlanta (I highly doubt American would give up its Chicago and Miami markets, which handles more international traffic).
I will solve the problem for you Nifty: Dallas annexes Irving, and Ft. Worth annexes Grapevine. It is settled.
Tighten the female dog!
Don't you folks already have threads on this stuff going on here
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=5006 and here http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=5006
No use mucking up yet a third thread with more of this "My city/airports better than yours" stuff.
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
Associated Press
American's Pilots Ask for Mediation
By DAVID KOENIG 01.10.08, 6:26 PM ET
DALLAS -
The pilots' union at American Airlines pushed Thursday for a federal mediator to help in contract negotiations, which after more than a year have produced few signs of progress.
American, the nation's largest carrier, rejected a union proposal for pay raises of about 50 percent but hasn't made a counter offer, union officials say.
The Allied Pilots Association asked American on Thursday to join its request for help from a federal mediator. The company indicated it was unlikely to go along.
Union leaders said they would give management until late Monday to respond before contacting the National Mediation Board, which could take over negotiations or tell the parties to keep talking face-to-face.
Union President Lloyd Hill said it was in the best interests of pilots, passengers and shareholders of American's parent, AMR Corp. (nyse: AMR - news - people ), to reach a quick agreement on a new contract.
An airline spokeswoman, Sue Gordon, said company officials were "disappointed that we haven't been able to make more progress."
But Gordon said officials "believe there are a number of areas where we can find common ground. We think direct bargaining (without a mediator) can continue to be a productive process."
Pilots at Fort Worth-based American are working under a 2003 contract that included pay cuts to help the company avoid bankruptcy. The contract can be updated May 1.
Talks on a new contract began in September 2006 but were delayed last summer when pilots elected Hill and other new leaders, who promised to take a harder line in negotiations.
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/...partner=alerts
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
True.Don't you folks already have threads on this stuff going on here
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=5006 and here http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=5006
No use mucking up yet a third thread with more of this "My city/airports better than yours" stuff.
Back on topic, Southwest is my bird of choice in the Lower 48.
Tighten the female dog!
I was wondering why the crowd suddenly got quiet? Lets try again!
I suspect most people just can't be bothered with you, but... here goes.
First of all, a link to the report you cited is here: http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/repor...200801atcr.pdf
Now, let's go through it methodically. First of all, citing raw numbers is irrelevant and misleading, since Southwest is a [u]significantly larger air carrier than American.
More specifically, Table 9 states that they have the following number of records to work with for each airline:
American 51,229
American Eagle 44,175
Southwest 97,798
To adjust for Southwest's much larger size, the correct focus shoud be on percentage of flights.
Table 1. Percent of On Time Arrivals (November only)
Southwest 84.5% (tied for 4th place out of 20)
American Eagle 76.7% (tied for 17th place)
American Airlines 75.6% (tied for 19th place)
Table 2. Percent of On Time Arrivals (12 months ending November)
Southwest 80.5% (3rd place)
American Eagle 70.0% (15th place)
Ameerican 69.4% (16th place)
Table 5. List of Regularly Scheduled Flights Arriving Late 80% of the Time or More
No Southwest flights listed
American #350 ORD-LGA (averages 56 minutes late)
American #1497 EWR-ORD (averages 51 minutes late)
American #1271 EWR-ORD (averages 66 minutes late)
American #1121 RDU-LGA (averages 60 minutes late)
American #360 ORD-LGA (averages 52 minutes late)
As an aside, here are the number of flights listed in the table for other airlines:
Airtran
Alaska
Aloha
American - 5
American Eagle - 0
ATA - 0
Atlantic Southeast - 0
Comair - 0
Continental - 1
Delta - 0
ExpressJet - 10
Frontier - 0
Hawaiian - 0
Jetblue - 0
Mesa - 1
Northwest - 5
Pinnacle - 0
Skywest - 0
Southwest - 0
United - 2
US Airways - 0
Table 6. Percentage of Regularly Scheduled Flights Late 70% or the Time or More
Southwest 0.1% (7th place)
American 0.8% (tied for 15th place)
American Eagle 0.8% (tied for 15th place)
Table 7. On-Time Arrival and Departure % by Airport
(Dallas airports are listed, just for information)
Percent on-Time Arrivals
Love Field 84.5%
DFW 81.4%
Percent on-Time Departures
Love Field 80.2%
DFW 78.4%
Table 8. Percent of Operations Cancelled
Southwest 0.6% (5th place)
American 1.1% (tied for 11th place)
American Eagle 1.7% (19th place)
Table 9. Causes of Delay by Carrier
Percent on-Time Arrivals
Southwest 84.5% (4th place)
American Eagle 76.7% (17th place)
American Airlines 75.6% (19th place)
Percent Cancelled
Southwest 0.58% (4th place)
American 1.06% (11th place)
American Eagle 1.67% (19th place)
Percent Diverted
American 0.08% (tied for 2nd place)
American Eagle 0.12% (tied for 8th place)
Southwest 0.12% (tied for 8th place)
Percent of Flights Delayed due to Air Carrier
Southwest 3.45% (4th place)
American Eagle 5.36% (13th place)
American 6.15% (15th place)
Percent of Flights Delayed due to Extreme Weather
Southwest 0.29%
American Eagle 0.42%
American 0.57%
Percent of Flights Delayed due to National Aviation System Congestion
Southwest 2.89%
American Eagle 7.02%
American 9.31%
Percent of Flights Delayed due to Security
American Eagle 0.00%
American 0.01%
Southwest 0.04%
Percent of Flights Delayed due to Late Arriving Aircraft
American 7.23% (15th place)
Southwest 8.15% (17th place)
American Eagle 8.71% (19th place)
Mishandled Baggage Complaints (per 1,000 pax)
Southwest 4.56 (10th place)
American 5.36 (11th place)
American Eagle 9.24 (last place)
Involuntary Denied Boardings (per 10,000 pax)
American 0.78 (7th place)
American Eagle 1.15 (10th place)
Southwest 1.16 (11th place)
Consumer Complaints (per 100,000 emplanements)
Southwest 0.24 (tied for 2nd place)
American Eagle 0.79 (11th place)
American 1.15 (16th place)
PuddinHead, I can't for the life of me figure out why you would want anyone to look at these reports. American and American Eagle come out looking terrible across the board.
Last edited by UptownDallas; 12 January 2008 at 11:29 PM.
Uptown,
Citing total numbers points out that percentages are misleading in reporting on airline performance. Percentages taken at face value blur the details. That is why it is so much fun to match the carriers numbers from the specific categories. No doubt about it AA looks terrible but digging into the details shows Southwests performance is not as stellar as some here would insist.
Notice if you will that the flights listed in the report as being 80% of the time late or more are flights between airports that Southwest does not serve and that the other airlines serving the same routes report similar results. There is no doubt what Southwests numbers would look like if they served the same airports in the same markets (as they should be), just the same the other airlines.
As to why AA gets more complaints than Southwest Consider this, from personal experience I was told by an AA employee that if I was not satisfied with the resolution to my concern that I could file a complaint to the DOT and was given information as to how to file the complaint but in a similar situation with Southwest no such information was provided. Could this have been an isolated anomoly? Maybe maybe not.
For all airports that both AA and SWA serve, there is not one instance where AA had a better DOT on time arrival rate than SWA.
http://aviation.beloblog.com/archive...ove_field.html
Here’s a comparison of all the airports that both American and Southwest serve and which have their November on-time stats reported to the DOT:
City American Southwest
Baltimore 80.2% 87.7%
Denver 73.0% 86.0%
Detroit 78.9% 87.0%
Fort Lauderdale 82.8% 89.5%
Washington Dulles 79.2% 86.3%
Las Vegas 72.9% 82.7%
Los Angeles 68.8% 79.4%
Orlando 75.9% 90.6%
Oakland 80.7% 85.2%
Porland, Oregon 68.0% 84.5%
Philadelphia 65.8% 75.8%
Phoenix 71.5% 83.0%
San Diego 73.4% 82.8%
Seattle-Tacoma 70.7% 84.7%
San Francisco 66.9% 75.2%
Salt Lake City 80.9% 85.7%
St. Louis 80.8% 86.0%
Tampa 80.8% 89.9%
January 15, 2008
Memo Pad
Big Fare Increases, Crowded Planes, and More Delays
By JOE SHARKEY
BIG FARE INCREASES After United Airlines raised domestic fares across the board by $50 a round trip on Friday, most major carriers quickly followed with similar increases on many routes, according to FareCompare.com. The reason was sharply higher fuel costs. Delta Air Lines raised its round-trip fares by $50 immediately after United’s move. American Airlines also posted $50 round-trip increases on 55 percent of its route system, though "conspicuously absent" are increases on its routes that overlap with many Southwest Airlines routes, said Rick Seaney, the chief executive of FareCompare.com. Then on Monday, Northwest Airlines also joined in the $50 increase on most of its routes. Continental Airlines, which initially raised fares by $50 on some routes on Friday, withdrew the increases Monday morning, but Mr. Seaney said it was unclear whether Continental might reverse course again soon. This was the second broad fare increase in 2008, and the 10th since last Labor Day, Mr. Seaney said, adding: "It seems the legacy airlines, United in particular, are forgoing the nickel-and-dime strategy of increases every few weeks and are going for the whole enchilada at one time."
Full story @ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/bu...er=MARKETWATCH
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
The Boyd Group Advantage
Aviation Insight & Perspectives
Available Nowhere Else
____________
Hot Flash - Monday, January 14, 2008
Southwest Spring Schedule
The LUV Bear Is Out of Hibernation
The Boyd Group has noted that Southwest will be the industry's most dangerous airline competitor in the coming 18 months. It's now coming to pass.
Not because of the value of its traditional operational model, which lightweight analysts consistently mischaracterize with terms like "regional" or "short haul" or their favorite, "point to point," - all of which are inaccurate - but because Southwest understands the weaknesses in that traditional model.
They've moved to position themselves as an airline perfect for business travelers. Not that they ever eschewed such traffic (take a gander at the folks in line at Love Field on Monday mornings) but now they're re-structuring and re-positioning to claw that sector away from other airlines with new advertising, new fare products and a revised boarding system that's still a long way from seat selection, but is no longer as reminiscent of lunchtime at the feed lot.
Cross Feed & Emerging Business Travel Flows. Their spring schedule change is also a major shift - they're repositioning again to capture more cross-flows over Denver, instead of Phoenix and Las Vegas. Repositioning to some degree from price-based flying into more focus on inter-connecting large business centers.
Airports:USA(R) has accomplished an analysis of the spring schedule change. On the surface, it merely might look like just a new focus on Denver, which it is. But how it was accomplished tells a wider story.
Full story @
http://www.aviationplanning.com/asrc1.htm
"Liberalism: Moochers Electing Looters to Steal from Producers."
The point was that AA, CO, UA, DL and NW all have delays due to the airport system. If WN served the same airports in the same markets as they should be they would have the same results.
So, is Southwest smart to avoid systemic problems, or are AA, CO, UA, DL dumb not to?
Comparing just the legacy carriers, the on-time rankings are as follows:
1) Delta
2) Southwest
3) US Airways
4) Northwest
5) Continental
6) American Eagle
7) American
8) United
All you are saying is that the carriers with poor on time performance are choosing to have bad on time performance, since you've clearly demonstrated that Southwest is choosing to operate in such a manner that they will not have bad on time performance.
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