More Dfw Routes?

[mturpiz]

Does anyone have any word on what's up with DFW? A lot of time has passed since AirTran announced their upcoming expansion:

8/27 AirTran announces 1x DFW-BWI to start in November
9/04 AirTran announces DFW expansion to 4 gates including plans to become #3 at DFW
10/30 AirTran announces 2x DFW-LAS to start in February

So it's almost five months since AirTran unveiled their DFW intentions, but only one new route announced about three months ago.

And given AirTran's typcially long time between announcement and start of service, a new route revealed today probably would not start until May or June.

Any reason why this is going so slowly? It would seem they could have capitalized on some momentum if their DFW gate announcement was followed fairly closely by a few new markets.

FYI, here's how the Dallas schedule looks for mid-summer at this point:

ATL 7x
LAS 2x
BWI 1x
MCO 1x

 

[funguy2]

I would venture to guess they do not have any aircraft to expand with... I think they have taken all 73 B717's and retired all DC-9's. To expand in DFW now would require taking away from something else... or waiting until the 50 737NG / 10 717 orders kick in....

 

[BonanzaAir]

Or just maybe Airtran is playing a game of wait and see.

DFW just might not be the best use of company assets. U is selling..maybe Airtran is buying. An industry in change.

or

Let JetBlue take the AMR 2/1 sale in it's markets...no sense stirring the pot in Dallas or any other place. Airtran wants to make a profit...doesn't mind if anyone else does too.

Bonanza

 

[rumorboy]

I think in there conference call last week they said that they are planning to get 14 airplanes this year. Almost all of the aircraft are to be delivered in the second half of the year. 2 717s in the first half and then 4 717s in the second half as well as 8 737s in the second half.

Not a whole lot of growth the first half of the year. I think DFW will grow slowly. They opened up 5 new cities in 2003. They need to digest these cities for a while.

 

[usairways85]

i heard one rumor that expansion at DFW has been put on hold, so i dont know.

 

[funguy2]

I am sticking with the lack of growth aircraft... which is supported by rumorboy.

AirTran has not announced anything significant in some time, in terms of new service. I don't think its just DFW, I think its a lack of growth aircraft coupled with the fact that everything they have now is "working", and therefore new service is not being funded by eliminating something that is "not working".

I agree that the industry is in flux. Regardless, AAI needs to use its DFW gates or get rid of them in the long run. I would guess that they use them rather than get rid of them. It would be unlike AAI to acquire something and then not use it. I am thinking this is just a bump in the road, not a detour.

 

[usairways85]

funguy2
Airtran was supposed to acquire 4 brand new gates in PHL, then they said they only wanted 2, but finally took 3 eventhough 4 were available. I know they didn't have those 4 gates set in stone, but they were essentially for Airtran and they didn't take all of them. So it would not surprise me to see Airtran drop 1 gate at DFW if they do not continue DFW expansion.

 

[coolflyingfool]

Hey US - are those the 4 gates that went to SWA? Just wondering if they were or are we talking different gates. Thanks for any info.

 

[rumorboy]

I think the gates that SWA is getting are in the E concourse. Airtran uses the D concourse.

 

[phllax]

That is true, however, the officials that run PHL made a big stink last year that any new gates built, or existing ones that become available after coming off of long term leases would be common use.

 

[usairways85]

Yes, the Airtran gates are at Terminal D(D14, D15, D16), they are 3 of 4 brand new gates built on a hammerhead addition at the end of the terminal.

The 4 southwest gates are at Terminal E and are TWA's former gates that have been rarely used as of late. ATA and a few charters used them, and for about a year AA used them to park aircraft overnight.

PHL officials made a big fuss that most if not all new gates built at Terminal's D and E would go to Low-fare carriers.

 

[funguy2]

Yes, the Airtran gates are at Terminal D(D14, D15, D16), they are 3 of 4 brand new gates built on a hammerhead addition at the end of the terminal.

The 4 southwest gates are at Terminal E and are TWA's former gates that have been rarely used as of late. ATA and a few charters used them, and for about a year AA used them to park aircraft overnight.

PHL officials made a big fuss that most if not all new gates built at Terminal's D and E would go to Low-fare carriers.

When I was there last summer, Air Tran had an aircraft at D12 also... but the area looked rarely used (although brand new)

 

[usairways85]

I think one of the 4 gates took a little longer to install and Airtran could have been termporarily using D12, because currently UA uses D12.

 

[coolflyingfool]

Thanks for the info - greatly appreciated.