Great Article

Twicebaked

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May 22, 2003
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US Airways landed in a mess at Philadelphia Airport
Sunday, January 30, 2005

By Dan Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Fred Testa had a feeling that Philadelphia might haunt US Airways.

The former director of the Philadelphia International Airport had witnessed first-hand the delays, bureaucracy, irate passengers and unhappy employees while there in 1999 and 2000. It was only a matter of time, he thought, until the airport's weaknesses punctured the operations of the nation's seventh-largest carrier.

His fears became reality over the Christmas weekend, when a combination of bad weather, sick employees and understaffing led to hundreds of US Airways flight delays, thousands of lost bags and countless angry holiday travelers.

The fiasco has observers wondering if it was a mistake for the airline to shift so many flights to the delay-prone, geographically constrained, city-owned-and-operated airport from Pittsburgh International, a much roomier facility that operates more independently and once was the airline's largest hub.

"US Airways has, by doing what they have done, really asked the Philadelphia hub to perform at levels it has never performed at before," said local airline analyst Bill Lauer.

The strategy of building up Philadelphia at the expense of Pittsburgh over the last few years is a reversal of the strategy US Airways and its predecessors used in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, when the airline was a niche carrier to towns in the Appalachian and Allegheny mountains and Pittsburgh had more flights than any other city in its system.

The major Philadelphia buildup didn't begin until the mid-to-late '90s under then-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Stephen Wolf. He was attracted by the nation's fourth-largest metropolitan area that he felt was underserved and by Philadelphia's possibilities as a gateway for the international flights that he wanted to add to the carrier's lineup.

The growth continued under new leadership, which perceived Pittsburgh as the weaker city that generated less traffic, an outpost for a route network that was shifting more toward the Eastern seaboard and Caribbean. US Airways now operates 459 daily flights out of Philadelphia, double the number that it operates in Pittsburgh, and two-thirds of the gates at the Philadelphia airport.

But for all the demographics and strategic reasons that made the Philadelphia move a sensible one, the danger all along has been the airport itself -- a cramped, unpredictable place that was not built for hub operations.

Testa, who now runs the Harrisburg International Airport, along with airline employees and former US Airways executives familiar with Philadelphia's operations all said the Christmas meltdown could happen again -- at any time. US Airways and the city of Philadelphia have known about the danger for years, they say, but have done little to solve the facility's long-term structural problems.

US Airways says that it has been aware of the problems in Philadelphia for a while and has been working to address understaffing issues and to boost operational efficiency by spreading out arrival and departure times so planes do not arrive in clumps. It also was part of a recent redesign of concourses B and C, and is trying to use a small, little-used runway whenever possible to free up congestion.

But a former US Airways executive familiar with the Philadelphia operations said the changes being made are mere pinpricks that will not solve the larger structural issues. "That place has been bursting at the seams for years," the former executive said. "At some point, the straw will break the camel's back."

The Philadelphia airport is serving more passengers and planes than any time in its history. With US Airways increasing its number of daily flights and discount rival Southwest Airlines starting service there last May, Philadelphia International last year shattered its previous passenger record by about 3 million.

The increased flights have been a boon for US Airways in many ways, none more notably than on its balance sheet. Because so much of the traffic at the Philadelphia airport is local, the airport generated $1.25 billion of revenue for the airline the first nine months of last year, nearly twice what was generated in Pittsburgh ($655 million) and about $500 million more than in the Charlotte hub, according to research firm Eclat Consulting.

But the increased flights also have brought increased headaches, particularly in the form of delays, with Philadelphia ranking as the nation's second-worst airport for on-time departures and fifth-worst for on-time arrivals through November of last year.

Built in 1940 on what was a World War I shipyard, Philadelphia International is a clogged facility, with the two main runways too close together to operate simultaneously during inclement weather.

Jet taxiways go in only one direction, jet alleyways are too narrow and many passenger-holding rooms are too small. In bad weather, the airport goes into "cardiac arrest," Testa said.

What's worse, a 5,000-foot commuter runway conceived in the 1980s and finished in 1999 is now unusable by smaller carriers who are trading in their smaller turbo-props for larger regional jets. The RJs need a longer runway to take off and land.

Attempts to extend the runway another 2,000 feet were nixed because of its proximity to the Kvaerner Philadelphia Shipyard, a project built with $429 million in city, state and federal funds and supported by then-Gov. Tom Ridge and then-Mayor Ed Rendell.

In a perfect world, US Airways would love to have Philadelphia's population feeding into Pittsburgh's wide-open, convenient, efficiently operated airport.

Part of Philadelphia's problem is that it was never designed to be a hub, as Pittsburgh International was. Instead it has been jury-rigged over time.

US Airways began building a hub presence there in the late 1980s, taking over gates from the defunct Eastern Airlines and Midway Airlines.

Wolf, who came to US Airways in early 1996, accelerated the shift, making the airport an trans-Atlantic hub for international flights in 1997 -- the same year Philadelphia surpassed Pittsburgh in passenger traffic for the first time.

A new baggage system was installed, replacing an antiquated get-up that needed duct tape to hold it together, and a $550 million, 13-gate international terminal for US Airways opened in 2003.

But Testa and others say the international terminal only added to the airport's congestion problems because it added capacity for passengers without addressing the more fundamental issue of expanding the runway capacity to handle all the added flights.

Testa came up with a plan that would have reconfigured the runways so they could operate independently, as those in Pittsburgh do, but he was never able to complete that expensive task before being ousted by Mayor John Street a few months after Street took office.

A new master plan is being developed by the current airport director, but is likely to take years to approve -- if at all. Testa said the city's ownership of the airport -- compared with the independent airport authority that controls Pittsburgh International -- slows decision making and contributes to the inertia. "Someone should think beyond their nose," he said.

"That has always been the problem in Philadelphia. They lack the ability to see beyond tomorrow," he said. "You can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, no matter how much perfume you stick on the sow's ear. A pig is a pig is a pig."

Another problem plaguing US Airways in Philadelphia is a strained relationship between management and labor. Always tense, that relationship has gotten worse in recent years as the company cut costs through two bankruptcies.

Employees who work on the ramp in Philadelphia claim they do not have enough equipment to do their jobs and the company hired too few workers to handle the required tasks, thus forcing some employees to work mandatory overtime.

Airline Vice President Sherry Groff admitted to the shortages in a memo sent out a few days before the Christmas holiday meltdown, and noted that catering might suffer on certain flights because those workers were needed to cover gaps elsewhere in the operation.

The airline was short about 150 to 200 ramp workers needed to maintain normal operations. "We continue to face significant challenges in keeping pace with our growth," Groff wrote in her Dec. 22 memo.

The worker shortages, exacerbated by employees who called in sick and a spell of bad weather, converged on Christmas to produce what airline Chief Executive Officer Bruce Lakefield called an "operational meltdown."

But it's a tough sell. "They can't get people to work there," said Roger Burns, one of the employees who called in sick over Christmas. "The morale is the worst I have seen in 20 years."

Burns, who retired on New Year's Eve, recalled a Saturday night before he left, when 13 Caribbean flights came in over a two-hour period with only 12 people staffed to work the 13 flights.

"There are not enough people to do the work," he said. "People get fed up."
 
If the operation doesn't change in PHL, it will be the demise of U.

No matter what revenue we collect from any other Route or Hub that we will have success in, PHL will eat that up.

I know folks think that the PIT papers are biased to Pittsburgh, but we have not in the past year had any success in PHL. NONE....GoFares or not, that will not make the airline money...just have a bunch of customers who get cheap fares, pack our seats, and collect FF miles.

Not a recipe for success or profit.
 
PITbull said:
If the operation doesn't change in PHL, it will be the demise of U.

No matter what revenue we collect from any other Route or Hub that we will have success in, PHL will eat that up.

I know folks think that the PIT papers are biased to Pittsburgh, but we have not in the past year had any success in PHL. NONE....GoFares or not, that will not make the airline money...just have a bunch of customers who get cheap fares, pack our seats, and collect FF miles.

Not a recipe for success or profit.
[post="243952"][/post]​

This is one of the few times I agree with pitbull. PHL is the black hole of U's system. A bulldozer could do wonders there, apparently the City owners could do no worse.
 
PITbull said:
If the operation doesn't change in PHL, it will be the demise of U.

No matter what revenue we collect from any other Route or Hub that we will have success in, PHL will eat that up.

I know folks think that the PIT papers are biased to Pittsburgh, but we have not in the past year had any success in PHL. NONE....GoFares or not, that will not make the airline money...just have a bunch of customers who get cheap fares, pack our seats, and collect FF miles.

Not a recipe for success or profit.
[post="243952"][/post]​
pitbull, i agree wholeheartedly!!! :up: PHL is U's demise!! The airport sucks, the operation is in shambles, and I'll say what you were afraid to......there are alot of employees there who just , plain, don't give a damn!!! I'll take the heat for that comment, and that is fine.....but, I lived, and worked in that area awhile back, and PHL people are definately different creatures!!! Glad i am far away from that cesspool!!! Good luck to everyone! GOOD DAY!!!
 
Twicebaked said:
US Airways landed in a mess at Philadelphia Airport
Sunday, January 30, 2005

By Dan Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Fred Testa had a feeling that Philadelphia might haunt US Airways.
A new master plan is being developed by the current airport director, but is likely to take years to approve -- if at all. Testa said the city's ownership of the airport -- compared with the independent airport authority that controls Pittsburgh International -- slows decision making and contributes to the inertia. "Someone should think beyond their nose," he said.

"That has always been the problem in Philadelphia. They lack the ability to see beyond tomorrow," he said.
[post="243948"][/post]​

It may be a PHL problem, but the fact that a city owns its airport(s) does not automatically mean that there will be these problems. Houston directly owns both IAH and HOU. Both are expanding facilities, adding runways, and growing in traffic.
 
While city-owned doesn't automatically mean that there will be problems, in significantly increases the likelihood that there will. After all, the city government has a lot to be concerned about, including law enforcement and roads. Independent airports are focused on one thing: the airport.
 
nycbusdriver said:
Staffing is not the root problem in PHL.  It's attitude.

If USAirways increases the staffing, it will merely mean that much more difficulty to find a good seat in front of the TV in the rampers' breakroom.
[post="244063"][/post]​
busdriver, I assume you are a pilot (as in Scare Bus Driver). If so, you know nothing about working short handed (staffing). When you are in the cockpit and look to your right or left...there will be someone there, or you don't work. A F/S agent looks to his right or left and if there is no-one there he/she has to do the best they can. I know it is hard for you to stoop low enough to think as a lowly F/S agent, but imagine being in a 737-400 (bowling alley bin) by yourself. How long do you think it would take you to load/unload it? I don't work in PHL...never have...never will, but if they have a staffing problem...it's staffing, not attitude. The staffing can make people have an attitude. But if staffing is the problem...it's staffing. If memory serves me correct, management has said "It's staffing." Oh, and even lowly agents are supposed to have uninterupted lunch periods and breaks.
 
nycbusdriver said:
Staffing is not the root problem in PHL. It's attitude.

If USAirways increases the staffing, it will merely mean that much more difficulty to find a good seat in front of the TV in the rampers' breakroom.
[post="244063"][/post]​

Watched a lone baggage handler the other day loading by himself. Threw bags from cart to belt, turned belt on, jumped into bin, threw bags into bin, turned belt off, jumped out of bin, threw bags on belt, turned belt on etc....
Now how is that attitude? Looks to me like staffing, staffing, staffing!!!
 
PSA1979 said:
Watched a lone baggage handler the other day loading by himself. Threw bags from cart to belt, turned belt on, jumped into bin, threw bags into bin, turned belt off, jumped out of bin, threw bags on belt, turned belt on etc....
Now how is that attitude? Looks to me like staffing, staffing, staffing!!!
[post="244087"][/post]​

PHL needs to be leveled and turned into a drag strip!! But then the races would always be 2 hours late!!
 
Oh, and even lowly agents are supposed to have uninterupted lunch periods and breaks.

Strictly speaking as a "sky god", Yesterday I had to work from 0800 until 1830 without any break (as in not getting off the plane). I wasn't happy about it, but I did so to move my customers through our system to the best of my crew's abilities. My day wasn't scheduled this way, but members of the IAM did their best to screw around on every flight causing us to lose our "lunch break". It's all about your attitudes, not staffing.........BTW PIT is way better than PHL as far as the airport and employees working there. The PIT employees have better attitudes and would somehow come together to cover for staffing issues. CLT is even better...
 
In res, more and more people are requesting NOT to connect thru PHL. Can't say I blame them. It doesn't cost anything to be nice to people, and I have had some very bad, and a (little bit of nice) experiences with U personnel in Phl. About 3 yrs ago, I checked my bag on a connection in PHL, (domestic flights) and my bag NEVER made it to my destination. Funny thing is, I saw it on the ground when it came off a commuter flt, so I know it was there. Needless to say, I am very empathetic to passengers when it comes to mishandled bags. And I never ever check anything that I could live without. If this problem with PHL is so obvious to us, why can't management get a clue?????
 
Alright i have a few questions to pose to you guys. First while I agree that PHL has major problems that need to be addressed immediately or else it will be the end of US, i don't see US surviving without PHL. Unless you can prove otherwise i just don't see it.

Next, i can completely understand why more and more people want to avoid PHL, however why did PHL just have a record breaking year in terms of pax numbers? Despite the numerous problems at PHL it seems as though the more US adds capacity at the airport the more people come.

I can't speak from experience but many of you often talk down about the attitude and morale of the workers at PHL. Well looking at it from the outside it's not that hard to understand. When you work at PHL while understaffed and have to unload an entire plane or two by yourself i can't imagine you are gonna love your job and want to come to work each day. Just imagine all the stress put on you just to get the plane loaded/unloaded quickly while staffed at regular levels. Now think of it when you have half the people to actually do the job. Sure not all the attitude problems stem from this but i bet if US never let PHL be understaffed many of these attitude problems would not exist.

The 5,000 ft. runway built a few years ago was the biggest waste of money. Not only is it too short for most RJ's but you can only land/take off in one direction. Should have spent that money and time developing a new master plan of the current runway situation. A situation that probably won't be fixed until 2020.

I think when the hub is rolled in a few days it will help some problems. If you have ever been at PHL you get a ton of airplanes landing at once and then can go for 2 hours and only see a dozen or so planes land. This is how the traditional hub works. However, given the design of PHL this approach only causes backups from the taxiways to the tarmac leading to airplanes waiting for gate space. I believe the rolled concept will help ease the gate space problems.

what will it take to get PHL to be privately owned instead of by the city of Philadelphia? Mayor Street has caused nothing but problems for the airport and is now under federal investigation for giving airport contracts to his brother i think. The extention onto terminal D at PHL took an extra year just because the contracters worked so slow and didn't do some of the work properly.
 
usairways85 said:
...i don't see US surviving without PHL. Unless you can prove otherwise i just don't see it.
Proving it is hard, because there are too many factors involved. In a very simplistic fashion, if PHL is costing more to keep open than it is generating in revenue, then PHL is hurting US.

why did PHL just have a record breaking year in terms of pax numbers?
The simplest answer is one word: Southwest. If you need to understand it better, Google "Southwest effect."

I think when the hub is rolled in a few days it will help some problems.
I think you're right. Should have been done at least two years ago.

what will it take to get PHL to be privately owned instead of by the city of Philadelphia?
A lot of political wrangling. Highly unlikely to happen in the near to mid future.