2006 O&D (Domestic)
PIT : 7,203,420
CLT : 8,197,620
Note these numbers do not include international O&D, which would increase CLT (mostly Caribbean) an additional 1.76M over PIT.
Just a small quote from this article:
"While US Airways lopped off flights connecting through Pittsburgh four years ago, the number of passengers originating from or destined for Pittsburgh has grown in that time from about 6.1 million a year to 8.3 million."
So I don't know where you got your numbers!
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_508279.html
Last week WN's CEO stated they are considering starting international service from PHL, either themselves or in partnership with ATA, and are waiting impatietly for the promised 4 additional gates this Fall. I'd speculate WN will likely redefine a portion of their route structure to feed those flights since relying on PHL (internatonal) O&D with US and several others already in the game is probably quite risky. If WN thought PIT had significant potential, I'd think they would have considered it instead of PHL purely from a competitive position - i.e., PIT has No internatonal competitors.
I still think people on this board need to wake up:
The US Airways continuation of cut and run tactics with Southwest will bury it in the end!
"We'll be watching the Pittsburgh market to see if there's an opportunity for Southwest to grow," said airline spokeswoman Whitney Eichinger, who called Pittsburgh "a great market for us." She added: "If we see something where we can add service, we will."
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_508279.html
"I think Southwest has a huge incentive to fill the (Baltimore) breach. It's not like those planes were flying empty," said David Beckerman, director of consulting services for BACK Aviation Solutions in Washington."
And don't look now, but Southwest is real close to matching the number of flts. of US mainline in PIT:
"Southwest has 23 daily departures from Pittsburgh to six destinations."
I doubt it. WN has had all the space and time necessaryto expand. It seems that PIT is low to nonexistant on the totem pole compared to DEN,SFO,and PHL.
Get used to it and you'll sleep better
You can bet the farm, WN will be adding more flights soon. Especially in the Florida market. From past experience, US gives its markets to WN on a silver platter.
And don't forget about this stuff and all the crap about cost, it was all smoke and mirrors by US Airways:
I'll give you a B. PIT's cost per enplaned passenger was compared to CLT, with the comparison being about $10 to $4. PIT's cost was never compared to PHL, most likely because the comparison wouldn't have the same impact - PHL was as or more costly per enplaned passenger.
A couple of other things also weren't mentioned. PIT's cost per enplaned passenger had risen from about $6 to $10 because of two factors - the drop in air travel after 911 reduced the number on enplaned passengers over which basically fixed costs were spread (this was true at all commercial airports to some degree including CLT and PHL) and US had already cut back flights at PIT resulting in a further drop in US' enplaned passengers (which raised the cost per enplaned passenger even further for US).
Jim
And what about all of those Frequent Fliers who all got together and are about to launch their business elsewhere
"During peak traffic hours in major hub airports, there is literally no margin for disruption, and even a relatively minor incident can completely screw up the complex choreography. Add weather problems and there's a total meltdown."
"While it may be too soon to tell travelers to avoid booking flights on US Airways, they would certainly be wise to keep these stormy forecasts in mind when evaluating their reservation options and make a purchase decision accordingly.
As Bob Dylan observed, "You don't have to be a weatherman to know which way the wind blows."
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07140/786914-243.stm
