New US cities

[Travelpro72]

Ya got me. I remember talking to an agent when they decided to pull the PIT-AVP flights. They were down to 2 dash-8's a day that were FULL. Not to mention they were majority business people paying full fares as many didn't joyride between the two cities on super saver fares. It baffled everyone. It also had nothing to do with connectivity in PIT anymore as they started and ended in either city. Cities like that existed throughout the US system in the Northeast but have no idea why they went away. It wasn't due to competition and a lack of high fares. 🙄

 

[SS255]

Ya got me. I remember talking to an agent when they decided to pull the PIT-AVP flights. They were down to 2 dash-8's a day that were FULL. Not to mention they were majority business people paying full fares as many didn't joyride between the two cities on super saver fares. It baffled everyone. It also had nothing to do with connectivity in PIT anymore as they started and ended in either city. Cities like that existed throughout the US system in the Northeast but have no idea why they went away. It wasn't due to competition and a lack of high fares. 🙄

This really baffled me. We used to have 4 or 5 flights a day AVP-PIT, with at least half of them being mainline. (For a while they used the E145's on this route. ) My flights were ALWAYS full, because NOBODY wanted to connect through PHL if they could connect through PIT instead. Slowly this route went all Express.....then down to one or two flights/day (which did not work with my connections to/from LAX) -- and then the route was abandoned altogether.

At some point between BK1 and the merger, US made the decision to force people through PHL, and I'm sure that the reduction and eventual elimination of AVP-PIT had everything to do with the elimination of PIT as a "focus city." What suprises me, though, is that there should be enough non-connecting traffic to keep this route afloat with at least one nonstop flight per day. And I would think that this is a point-to-point route which would be profitable. It makes absolutely no sense to fly AVP-PHL-PIT when you can drive it in 5 hours.

 

[back2CLT]

People around that time (late 90's) were condiditioned to believe that airtravel was no longer a premium product. The rise of the LCC's made consumers think they were getting ripped off. Why be a sucker and pay $400 bucks per person to fly to Wilkes Barre to visit Aunt Betty, when you can pile the family in the Caravan and get there for $120.

This would be about the same time when it became soically accpetable to wear jeans and a t-shirt and flip flops when flying.

When a product becomes mass-market, often niche consumers are sacrificied.....this applies to any product. It's called selling out, and every US based airline is guilty.

 

[Kev3188]

Sometime approx 2000-01 US had PIT-MSN service utilizing either 50 seat CRJs or ERJs.

Flown with CRJ's... Not sure of the start/stop, but it began after June of '01, and ended not *too* long after that...

 

[BuffaloJoe]

Bring READING(RDG) Back!

 

[wings396]

Both MSN and DSM are also not really new:

Sometime approx 2000-01 US had PIT-MSN service utilizing either 50 seat CRJs or ERJs. I think it was ended sometime shortly after 9-11. In addition to current PHX service, DSM also had US Express service (via Air Midwest) to MCI (about 3 BE1900s a day) until approx 02-03.

I thought that DSM was operated with the F-100..........

 

[JetMonkey]

In the 80's America West flew PHX-DSM in a 737.

 

[phllax]

DSM got East with the DC-9 and F100.

HP flew to DSM with a Mesa subsidiary call Desert Sun which flew the F70.

 

[drifterreno]

GRR is not new either, we used to serve it out of our DAY hub back in the day.

None of the cities are new as PI flew all of them.

 

[N965VJ]

LAN, FNT, GRR, EVV, DAY, etc were also all served under the IND hub in the 90s. I remember flying from DEC to IND on a Jetstream a few times

EVV was mainline as well up until the early 90s.

And which of all these places had a Jumer’s Castle hotel? Some of them went bankrupt 10 years ago, so Google’s not much help.

 

[Dont call me Shirley]

Don't forget that US flew to MSN for a while in early '90s. F-100s tp PIT, I think. Seemed like a nice little station. Jim Forbes, a good guy by all accounts, was the stn mgr.

 

[JetMonkey]

DSM got East with the DC-9 and F100.

HP flew to DSM with a Mesa subsidiary call Desert Sun which flew the F70.

That wasn't until the mid 90's when Desert Sun was merged into Mesa. AWA flew in there with 73's in the early days of HP.

 

[phllax]

That wasn't until the mid 90's when Desert Sun was merged into Mesa. AWA flew in there with 73's in the early days of HP.

I also saw pictures on Anet of a HP320 in DSM too in 1999

 

[vantheman63]

Both MSN and DSM are also not really new:

Sometime approx 2000-01 US had PIT-MSN service utilizing either 50 seat CRJs or ERJs. I think it was ended sometime shortly after 9-11. In addition to current PHX service, DSM also had US Express service (via Air Midwest) to MCI (about 3 BE1900s a day) until approx 02-03.

And before that, I'm 110% certain DSM-PIT was flown with DC-9 equipment...maybe F-100s later...and I believe MSN was as well. Twice a day, as USAir in the early and mid 90s.

Lets not forget as well, MCI was a small hub, or "focus city" with service to SEA, SAN, LAX, SFO and LAS as well as points east to MCO, TPA, MIA, etc.

No one's been able to make a go of it in MCI...I'm guessing because O&D traffic is lacking.

 

[jimcfs]

No one's been able to make a go of it in MCI...I'm guessing because O&D traffic is lacking.

Except WN. 😉