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On 2/5/2003 9
47 AM ExAF wrote:
They are bypassing the Detroit hub on a pretty long leg which would hardly classify as "feeding the hub."
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When did MSP stop being a hub for NW?
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On 2/5/2003 9
47 AM ExAF wrote:
Shouldn't this be flown by a 9 or an Airbus?
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With all due respect, don't you think that you are over-reacting here? NW mainline has never served PWM, and Pinnacle has served it for only a few years. To me, this is an indication of NW's success in establishing its brand in a market where it had no presence at all only a few years ago.
Keep in mind that NW currently operates nonstop service to some cities in the western U.S. and Canada (ABQ, COS, RNO, SMF, SLC, GEG and TUS, among others) only from MSP, and the new PWM-MSP service enables NW to better compete against other carriers that can already offer single-connection service from PWM via their own hubs. This helps to improve, even if only in a small way, the economics of the existing MSP-west mainline flights.
And BTW, while NW has indeed replaced some mainline flying with RJs, it has also done the opposite. For example, a few years ago, NW started flying in 2 new markets, MSP-JAX and MSP-PVD, with RJs to gauge passenger demand (NW already served each market from DTW). After a period of development, the routes proved to be successful enough that NW converted the flights to A319s. So clearly NW's use of RJs is not just a "one-way street."