New Delta Routes and their Exit Strategy

Aviation Airlines
1

Hi All, this is my first post though I have been reading the forums for several months.

I live in Snowmass Village, CO and was very excited that DL (operated by SkyWest) will be offering 2x daily service to and fro SLC by CRJ-700. United has also replaced all of their jet legs into ASE with the 700 (also oped by SkyWest), Mesa runs all of the DH8 flights, AmericaWes…uh humm US Air and United.

It seems that in addition to offering more high revenue international flights, DL is also offering more flights to smaller resort type destinations, I would imagine that the profit margins into these locations (Aspen, Jackson Hole, etc) are pretty good. I am sure that the 700 is much less expensive to fly in here than the Avros that Air Wisco and NWA used to fly in here.

Also, to comment on some discussion about DL’s actual “hubs” I recently saw that they listed, in one of their official docs, ATL, CVG, and SLC as hubs with JFK, LAX listed as gateway cities.

My recent experiences on DL:
DEN-ATL 757
ATL-DEN MD-88
SLC-ATL 767-400ER
Have all been amazing. The new uniforms look great, the flights were packed and the crews were up beat, optimistic and generally conveying to me that things were on the up and up. Of course I haven’t read the DL balance sheet lately and they are trading at around eighty cents a share, but from a strictly anecdotal perspective I am hopeful that DL will be able to pull out of this mess they have gotten themselves into and become profitable. General comments?

A

2

Welcome to the forum!! I’m sure routes to Snowmass, Aspen, & Vail are profitable, if for no other reason than the $HIGH$ prices. My wife has relatives in Glenwood Springs. GORGEOUS AREA. Anyway, it would cost us AT LEAST double, if not triple, to “hop” from Denver to Aspen as it does to fly from either CAK or CLE all the way to DEN. We’ve driven in the past, but now we have kids :angry: . When we do make it back out there, we’ll probably just fly to DEN and rent a car for the 3-hour drive to Glenwood!!

3

I know that when AA does their seasonal flights into the resort areas of CO, they are very profitable because the flights are (I think this is what my friend who works for AA told me) over booked about 95% of the time.

4

Not sure what you mean by “exit strategy” in your subject line, ASEspotter.

5

Unless they change a/c type during the “ski rush” months, I can see this happening with an E-145 that only holds, what, 70 people? Even MD-80s on these routes would probably fill up quickly. There’s A LOT of ski bunnies!!

6

AA and most of the other carriers fly 757s into EGE, it is pretty impressive to see such a large aircraft navigate such a small valley. I also read recently that the Steamboat/Hayden Airport is just finishing an expansion allowing 75s.

7

Most probably the “exit strategy” out of Chap. 11, no?

Isaac

8

I think that’s what he meant too.

9

I 2nd that…all in favor? Move conensus…

Gotta love Robert’s Rules of Order…

10

Edit on behalf of JHEM:

I too think that’s what he meant. :wink:

…I’m gettin’ there!!

11

Good job, planeaholic. Poor grammar is something with which I shall not up put… 8)

Isaac