Competition Heats Up with AA

Interestingly enough, AA just announced that they're starting service at the end of August to IND, PIT, CMH, BDL and others. RDU already started last week. I know IND has tried actively to spur additional service, especially to the West Coast (particularly SFO and SEA) of late, so its a bit of a surprise, at least for me, to see AA come in on LAX-IND.

DL operates IND-LAX three times weekly, I believe Thursday, Friday and Monday. The flights are a redeye on LAX-IND and a 730p flight IND-LAX. Wondering if AA (who has yet to announce the frequency of the flights) will chase DL off this route or if the competition will be healthy to both airlines and passengers.

For those who're in markets where DL has had a flight and others have come in, how have they responded in the past?

I'm based in Indy too and have taken that LAX flight a few times. It's a very handy flight for a 'smallish' city to have....
It has always been a pretty full 757 every time I've been on it. I've talked to several pax who were actually making a connection in IND to the LAX flight in order to connect on to the QANTAS flight to SYD.
(unfortunately, connections tend to throw a curveball to IND baggage handlers, and I've seen more than one "SYD" on luggage tags going around and around at the IND baggage carousel).

That said, I think DL has a large enough footprint in IND (especially with the new SC) to keep AA at arm's length. I assume AA would come in with 737s of some sort.

[QUOTE=CGNC;20569876]Interestingly enough, AA just announced that they're starting service at the end of August to IND, PIT, CMH, BDL and others. RDU already started last week. I know IND has tried actively to spur additional service, especially to the West Coast (particularly SFO and SEA) of late, so its a bit of a surprise, at least for me, to see AA come in on LAX-IND. [QUOTE]

AA already has service to all of those cities. I'm guessing you mean they are starting new routes between those cities and non-hubs. Do you have a list of the new routes?

AA served IND already.

Yes, non-stop service to those markets.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/busine...695_story.html

All these (plus GRU, pending government approval) are new AA nonstops to LAX. (You failed to mention that bit except for IND.)

It'll be interesting to see what DL does on LAX-CMH/IND. After AA announced LAX-RDU, DL changed its RDU schedule, made it daily, and announced LAX-BNA in short order. I wonder if we'll see a similar response here.

Perhaps thread title should have been: Competition Heats Up with AA at LAX?

Would LOVE LAXDFW or LAXORD on DL.

Just let me grab my time machine...annnnnnd

CMH is my home airport. I have taken CMH-LAX quite a few times. It's usually a 737-800 that's 60ish% full. DL flies it daily I believe.

It's interesting that AA is adding that route. They already have better routes for me to many of my customers (I can't fly DL direct to CHI, or DC/BWI). They even have mobile boarding passes out of CMH which DL does not. ut I'm a GM and stuck with Delta as they are a client as well. sigh...

AA would dump capacity on those-plus DL doesn't have a huge hub to work with at DFW.
(I would loe it too to hopefully see $59 fares each way or less!)

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0763098.html

Indianapolis is the 12th largest city in the USA - that is not small IMHO

Only 33rd by metro area population. Not small, but certainly not huge.

Hey, hey now...I live in Indy.
Regardless of stats, it's got that "Dayton/Norfolk/Erie/Abilene" feel.
They still roll up the sidewalks after midnight and the kids still ask the local TV weatherman for his autograph.