PIT -- HUB AGAIN?

[EyeInTheSky]

Well, PIT is still here ready, willing, and able to serve. The burning question is: Will it be too late when the company realizes they need PIT.

 

[BuffaloJoe]

Will US ever return to RDG? I still can't believe they dumped RDG to bring LNS back. MDT is about a 20 minute drive from there. Nearest to RDG is about an hour, ABE, PHL or MDT depends what side of the city you live on and traffic. Reading has alittle less population than the Lancaster area, but that population area is 50% Amish.
The Amish do not use cars yet fly. US screwed up downsizing from a DH8/D38 to those B1900's. Plus RDG can handle RJ's, LNS can not. WN brings in a 737-700 for Charters to Orlando about 10 times a year. Also Allegiant comes in for some Laughlin junkets.

 

[ringmaruf]

Will US ever return to RDG? I still can't believe they dumped RDG to bring LNS back. Plus RDG can handle RJ's, LNS can not.

US didn't make the decision, the DOT did. (Well, US made the decision to drop reading, but the DOT is the one forcing service at LNS through the EAS subsidies, otherwise it wouldn't have any service either. RDG is too close to PHL to qualify, LNS isn't.) And RJs? You've got to be kidding me. A market like RDG would be the absolute worst place in the world to place high-cost RJs.

 

[Jimmy Neutron]

Most of the tough decision has already happened at PIT. PHL and CLT continuing as connecting hubs? Dunno whether that's a recipe for profits. We'll see.

The thing everyone seems to forget is that PIT has almost double the O & D traffic that CLT has and no one says anything about having 500+ flights a day there.
Oh I forgot it's the strategic location of CLT that makes it work.
If anyone would look back when PIT was the primary hub for US they would see that as a connecting hub (that is what CLT is) it worked, people loved it and the operation of the airline wasn't in the tank constantly.
PHL will never work the way they have been trying to use it no matter how much $ and equipment and employees they throw at it, never.
All Bronner and Lakefield did was take a failed Dave Siegel plan, put it into action and had no clue how bad the plan actually was. But those two were in way over their heads to realize how flawed that plan was and tweak it as needed.
So the end result is what we have today, a mess that no one wants to admit needs changed or has the balls to do it.
If Doug Parker is as smart as everyone seems to think he is (everyone thought Dave Siegel was god too) :blink: then he will do the right thing and pull the connecting traffic from PHL or the whole company will just be in BK yet again.

 

[Travelpro72]

I am so glad you pointed out the whole CLT thing. PIT is definately larger than CLT. The flights routed through CLT work well for north south flights. The real reason the flights fly out of CLT to the islands is they can't get the crews due to legalities to do most island turns from PHL. The aruba trip is a perfect example: PHL AUA-AUA CLT and overnight then CLT AUA-AUA PHL. If you feed flights into PIT many of the flights would feed each other. It's complete BS. Sure PHL is a very large city with a great O&D base but to connect them there is absolutely unnecessary. How is it that WN can do PHL w/o needing to be a connecting hub? It's bunk. Tap into the markets that the O&D passengers want to go and some connections to feed your Int'l. People can try to reason PHL as a good idea until the cows come home. PIT worked for years and the company did fine until 9-11.

 

[tadjr]

Sure PHL is a very large city with a great O&D base but to connect them there is absolutely unnecessary.

Had a CHPR and Gold today ask to change to earlier flights until I told them the earliest flight was thru PHL. One said no, I'll stay with what I have and the other ended up taking a flight that got in an hour later, but conx thru CLT just to avoid PHL.
Is there really any O&D traffic on PHL-AVP/ABE/MDT?
A couple flights for INTL conx and that should be it. Other conx to these places should be thru PIT/CLT/DCA. JMHO.

 

[Travelpro72]

I often wonder how many of the cities that are served nonstop out of PHL are mostly filled by O&D passengers. I can tell ya that looking at a manifest with PHL connections many are connecting. Sure some later evening flights are O&D. Now I'm not saying that some of the bigger cities US serves out of PHL are not filled with many O&D but many are not as well. I have also heard that the O&D are combined with the connecting passengers to make it a more profitable flight. NEWS FLASH very little has been profitible except for transatlantic and carribean according to the airline. That being said, it will be quite some time and possibly too late when its realized the company ran as smooth as silk for the most part when it hubbed in PIT along with PHL. Too many people flying to rely on PHL by itself in the NE.

 

[Travels2mch]

Had a CHPR and Gold today ask to change to earlier flights until I told them the earliest flight was thru PHL. One said no, I'll stay with what I have and the other ended up taking a flight that got in an hour later, but conx thru CLT just to avoid PHL.

That is standard operating procedure with myself and all of my coworkers who also travel extensively.....do anything to avoid PHL. Since I have to connect everywhere now from PIT, I end up buying most tickets on United and do the code share and most connections through ORD. Still get the DM and keep Gold for when I do fly US.

The only other option is flying through CLT, however to get to the midwest it is very time consuming....but I'll do that before ever stepping foot in PHL again. And I also have waited longer for alternative flights refusing earlier options that connect through PHL, so what was stated above doesn't surprise me at all.

They really made a mess of things when they pulled PIT....just ask any customer sitting in any waiting area for yet another delayed PHL flight, or many of the poor folks that live there and have no other choice but to utilize that poor excuse of an airport.

 

[jetpiedmont79]

Well, PIT is still here ready, willing, and able to serve. The burning question is: Will it be too late when the company realizes they need PIT.

Amen brother, amen!

 

[PITbull]

As to NW - I don't see DL and NW merging. I'm a proponent of AA stepping up and consolidating its operations with those of NW. Don't care how. Merger, asset purchase, liquidation auction - whatever it takes. It made sense nearly six years ago when the two discussed an AA purchase of NW, and it makes even more sense today, given UAL's survival and exit from Ch 11.

With the NRT and China rights of NW, a combined AA/NW is perfectly situated to compete with UAL, which I see finally joining with DL (which it wanted to do years ago).

Besides - conventional wisdom is that single-airline dominant hub cities pay thru the nose for their nonstop flight convenience. Pax in DFW, MSP, DTW, ATL, IAH, etc. complain that their dominant airline gouges them. Academics have said that's not really the case in ORD, given the healthy competition between UAL and AA, which helps keep prices in check.

DIA and ORD make sense for a combined UAL/DL, especially since SLC-connected pax could move to DIA and any truly high-fare pax connecting at CVG would now connect at ORD. ATL would still make sense as a southern hub (after all, I see AA keeping DFW, ORD and MIA). UAL really should choose LAX or SFO, and LAX really makes more sense for a hub, given SFO's perpetual runway/weather issues not faced at LAX.

US/HP? As I have posted before - that's a lotta hubs for a somewhat smaller airline. Most of the tough decision has already happened at PIT. PHL and CLT continuing as connecting hubs? Dunno whether that's a recipe for profits. We'll see.

Funny 😀 ...folks on here said United wouldn't emerge from BK. Their scheduled to emerge in two weeks.

NW will survive BK as well without a merger. (Heard it here first).

 

[TheLarkAscending]

Funny 😀 ...folks on here said United wouldn't emerge from BK. Their scheduled to emerge in two weeks.

I recall, quite vividly, all of those :blink: inaccurate :blink: predictions; yes, they were always good for a laugh! 😉

Go PIT/Go Steelers!

 

[Jimmy Neutron]

That is standard operating procedure with myself and all of my coworkers who also travel extensively.....do anything to avoid PHL. Since I have to connect everywhere now from PIT, I end up buying most tickets on United and do the code share and most connections through ORD. Still get the DM and keep Gold for when I do fly US.

The only other option is flying through CLT, however to get to the midwest it is very time consuming....but I'll do that before ever stepping foot in PHL again. And I also have waited longer for alternative flights refusing earlier options that connect through PHL, so what was stated above doesn't surprise me at all.

They really made a mess of things when they pulled PIT....just ask any customer sitting in any waiting area for yet another delayed PHL flight, or many of the poor folks that live there and have no other choice but to utilize that poor excuse of an airport.

Amen, finally we are hearing the real truth about lost customers and revenue because of the PHL mess.
Now if we could get all those great customers we used to serve, and serve well through PIT to start hammering the e-mails and letters to US Airways upper management. We may be able to save this airline afterall.
Any Ideas? B)

 

[AstroLounge]

Amen, finally we are hearing the real truth about lost customers and revenue because of the PHL mess.
Now if we could get all those great customers we used to serve, and serve well through PIT to start hammering the e-mails and letters to US Airways upper management. We may be able to save this airline afterall.
Any Ideas? B)

Problem is the emails and telephone calls are not answered. I alone have received MANY PMs on this site from Chrm Preferreds that have stated their dismay w/ no professional courtesy or responses from people that can make a difference. PIT used to be a haven of connecting business folks from all regions.....after enduring PHL, the excuses, the delays and poor performance my guess is they have MOVED ON.

 

[barbeetantrums]

Amen, finally we are hearing the real truth about lost customers and revenue because of the PHL mess.
Now if we could get all those great customers we used to serve, and serve well through PIT to start hammering the e-mails and letters to US Airways upper management. We may be able to save this airline afterall.
Any Ideas? B)

douglas.parker@usairways.com

He may not answer but his cloggod inbox may give him a hint.

 

[trvlr64]

I've always wondered why people were so set against having PIT and PHL as hubs. All you would hear is that you don't need 2 hubs in the same state over and over again. PIT to PHL is 304 miles. Can someone explain why LAS is a hub still? LAS to PHX is 287 miles. HHHMM? Seems to me that LAS shouldn't be a hub either in the grand scheme of things.