US Airways Dividend Miles (Pre-FlightFund Merger) - US Airways Express To Begin Nonstop Asheville-New York Regional Jet Service

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A320 EOW

Dec 8, 03, 12:57 pm

First posting didn't come out correctly- sorry.

http://www.usairways.com/about/press/nw_03_1208.htm

US AIRWAYS EXPRESS TO BEGIN NONSTOP ASHEVILLE-NEW YORK REGIONAL JET SERVICE

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 8, 2003 -- US Airways Express announced today that it will begin twice-daily nonstop regional jet service between Asheville, N.C., and New York’s LaGuardia Airport on Feb. 8, 2004.

The new flights will use 50-seat regional jets operated by US Airways Express affiliate carriers Chautauqua and Mesa Airlines.

Sunday-Friday Schedule
Departing Asheville Arriving New York
7:25 a.m. 9 a.m.
5:35 p.m. 7:10 p.m.

Departing New York Arriving Asheville

2:55 p.m.
5 p.m.
7:41 p.m. 9:52 p.m.

Saturday Schedule

Departing Asheville

Arriving New York
7:25 a.m. 9 a.m.

Departing New York Arriving Asheville
2:30 p.m. 4:35 p.m.

"The Asheville community has been very supportive of not only our nonstop service to destinations in the Carolinas, but connecting service to 110 cities beyond," said Daniel M. McDonald, US Airways vice president of planning and scheduling. "We are pleased to expand our presence in Western Carolina to include daily nonstop service to New York, one of the country’s premiere business and leisure destinations."

From Asheville, US Airways Express operates seven daily Charlotte, N.C. roundtrip flights, as well as daily roundtrip service to Greenville, S.C., and Raleigh/Durham, N.C.

US Airways is offering an introductory special of triple Dividend Miles for paid, qualifying nonstop flights between Asheville and New York LaGuardia, Feb. 8-Apr. 8, 2004. Members must register before departure at usairways.com/dm/7569 or by calling 800-872-4738 and entering bonus number 7569.

This offer is applicable on published fares on US Airways’ nonstop or direct flights between Asheville and New York LaGuardia. Bonus miles do not count toward earning Preferred status or E-Upgrades. This offer cannot be combined with other flight bonus offers. Retroactive mileage credit will not be given prior to registration. All Dividend Miles terms and conditions apply.

Passengers flying on US Airways Express regional jets travel comfortably in a quiet, roomy cabin equipped with leather seats where every seat is on either an aisle or a window. Regional jets offer stand-up headroom, reclining seatbacks, large overhead storage bins, and a restroom. Flight attendant service is provided on every flight.

These regional jets have a cruising speed of over 500 miles per hour with a range of more than 1,000 miles, and can cruise at altitudes above 35,000 feet, providing US Airways Express long-range regional jet capability.

The US Airways Express wholly owned subsidiaries and affiliate carriers currently operate more than 2,000 flights daily, serving nearly 150 destinations in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean. For additional information on fares and schedules, visit US Airways online at usairways.com.

Reporters needing additional information should contact US Airways Corporate Affairs at (703) 872-5100.

HPTunco

Dec 8, 03, 2:00 pm

Asheville to LGA? I guess the Vanderbilt's won't need to take the train to Biltmore anymore!

kudzu

Dec 8, 03, 3:16 pm

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thumbsup.gif
Finally, CO gets some competition on their twice-daily AVL - EWR route!

Connecting in CLT gets me just about everywhere I want to go as a leisure flier, so I'm not sure I'd use this new service much. I know that the local businessmen are pleased, though.

BTW, the George Vanderbilt descendants live in AVL and haven't taken the train down to GSP (no direct passenger service to AVL) in a very long time.......

Oxb

Dec 8, 03, 3:43 pm

Originally posted by kudzu:
Finally, CO gets some competition on their twice-daily AVL - EWR route!


I was sort of wondering if this would cause CO to have second thoughts about continuing their EWR service. Can AVL support 4 flights a day to NYC?

edited to fix bungled quote

[This message has been edited by Oxb (edited Dec 08, 2003).]

[This message has been edited by Oxb (edited Dec 08, 2003).]

trvlr64

Dec 8, 03, 4:38 pm

Is there that much demand for AVL to LGA?

And who the heck writes this drivel.......Passengers flying on US Airways Express regional jets travel comfortably in a quiet, roomy cabin equipped with leather seats where every seat is on either an aisle or a window. Regional jets offer stand-up headroom, reclining seatbacks, large overhead storage bins, and a restroom. Flight attendant service is provided on every flight.

They must have been only 4 foot tall. I'm only 5'7" and find the RJ's cramped.

phllax

Dec 8, 03, 5:51 pm

What really amazes me is that for the 2 flights daily they are going to use 2 contract carriers, Mesa and Chautaqua. Sounds like another case of good planning. How about letting PSA fly their new jets on the route.

Miami_Flyer

Dec 8, 03, 6:41 pm

Compared to coach on a US 737, the ERJ's do feel spacious.

Dec 8, 03, 6:57 pm

Originally posted by kudzu:

Finally, CO gets some competition on their twice-daily AVL - EWR route!

Connecting in CLT gets me just about everywhere I want to go as a leisure flier, so I'm not sure I'd use this new service much. I know that the local businessmen are pleased, though.

BTW, the George Vanderbilt descendants live in AVL and haven't taken the train down to GSP (no direct passenger service to AVL) in a very long time.......[/B]

Yes, there is. AVL-GSP-RDU and back once daily.

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"Press two and the star button now" -- AA automated information by telephone, 1996
"Press two" -- AA automated information by telephone, 2003

Dont call me Shirley

Dec 8, 03, 9:14 pm

Originally posted by trvlr64:
Is there that much demand for AVL to LGA?

And who the heck writes this drivel, large overhead storage bins, .



LARGE overhead bins!? Now that is more of a stretch than the stand-up cabin!

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"I am serious...and don't call me Shirley"
(Leslie Nielsen as Dr Rumack in "Airplane")

kudzu

Dec 8, 03, 10:01 pm

Originally posted by JS:
Yes, there is. AVL-GSP-RDU and back once daily.


I was referring to passenger train service to/from AVL as a side comment. I live here, and if there's a passenger train, then it's something most locals don't know about.

US1@ORF

Dec 9, 03, 4:50 am

This is an interesting route that US is starting. What industry and corporations are located in AVL that would have ties to NYC?

I'm not knocking nonstop service for the fine folks of AVL, but I'm just wondering how this route will sustain itself over the long term.

Also, as another poster pointed out, sure is interesting that US will use two contract carriers to operate the route. I guess there is no greater efficiency by using only one carrier? Of course I've always wondered what overhead costs could be avoided by having fewer contract carriers under the US livery? At a minimum I would believe the legal expenses alone would provide significant savings as there must be redundancy reviewing/managing multiple contracts for the same purpose. I could go on. Perhaps this would be a great Capstone project for some grad student to research. I certainly would love to do it if I were in school.

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US-CP; UA PE; AA Plat; Hilton Gold VIP; Six Continents Gold

Dec 9, 03, 10:25 am

Originally posted by kudzu:

I was referring to passenger train service to/from AVL as a side comment. I live here, and if there's a passenger train, then it's something most locals don't know about.

Oops, I thought you were talking about air. Airport codes are for airplanes. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

Actually, there is a discussion going on to have a train between Greenville and Asheville. There is a stretch of track that hasn't been used in years, and people want something on it before the railroads tear it up for scrap. The sticking point is where do you start to reach that track (Greenville, Spartanburg, Greer, etc.?), and how far can you go on existing track in service at the other end (Hendersonville, Asheville, etc.?)

One of these days I am going to figure out a way to fly between GSP and AVL without spending a fortune, just to say I flew the route. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/biggrin.gif

------------------
"Press two and the star button now" -- AA automated information by telephone, 1996
"Press two" -- AA automated information by telephone, 2003

[This message has been edited by JS (edited Dec 09, 2003).]

Oxb

Dec 9, 03, 11:10 am

One of these days I am going to figure out a way to fly between GSP and AVL without spending a fortune, just to say I flew the route.

If you figure out a way to do that, you can have the person that drops you off at GSP waiting for you at AVL to pick you up http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

NYC Flyer

Dec 9, 03, 12:20 pm

Question:

Are both Mesa and Chataqua ERJs equipped to carry a Kennel as checked baggage?

My dog and I have been flying into GSP from LGA on US, even though AVL is more convenient for Hendersonville. BTW, CO jets flying EWR-AVL are not equipped to carry Kennels, and CO is too expensive (the dog pays more than me!)

Dec 9, 03, 1:31 pm

Originally posted by Oxb:
If you figure out a way to do that, you can have the person that drops you off at GSP waiting for you at AVL to pick you up http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif



It's only a 20 minute flight (probably 10 minutes actual flight time), so I would be the one waiting for the driver. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

------------------
"Press two and the star button now" -- AA automated information by telephone, 1996
"Press two" -- AA automated information by telephone, 2003

[This message has been edited by JS (edited Dec 09, 2003).]

Oxb

Dec 9, 03, 2:08 pm

I was counting checkin/security/wait at gate time/flight/deplaning time http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

US1@ORF

Dec 9, 03, 5:13 pm

Originally posted by JS:
It's only a 20 minute flight (probably 10 minutes actual flight time), so I would be the one waiting for the driver. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif



Why would anyone pay to fly 42 miles? It would take longer to fly than drive. Believe it or not, US sells a fare AVL-GSP that connects in CLT if the timing of the non-stop does not work. The flight, via a connection in CLT, takes over 3.5 hours. Why would anyone elect this option?????

What am I missing????

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US-CP; UA PE; AA Plat; Hilton Gold VIP; Six Continents Gold

Dec 10, 03, 8:04 pm

Not O&D, but AVL to GSP to somewhere else and back to AVL (my wife would not be interested in picking me up at AVL). The idea is to say that I flew a really short flight of AVL-GSP. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/smile.gif

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"Press two and the star button now" -- AA automated information by telephone, 1996
"Press two" -- AA automated information by telephone, 2003

pitflyer

Dec 10, 03, 8:43 pm

Or people who desperately need segments. I've flown MGW-PIT-PKB-PIT-MGW where I could have driven from MGW-PKB and back in less time, and my connections were timed perfectly (30 minutes in PIT, same plane turnaround in Parkersburg).

The folks at MGW were not surprised at the least, so I guess it does happen!

SS255

Dec 11, 03, 10:42 am

Originally posted by pitflyer:
Or people who desperately need segments.



That's precisely what I was thinking, but I doubt "extra segments for roaches" was factored into this business decision.

[This message has been edited by SS255 (edited Dec 11, 2003).]