Originally Posted by
tjisnumbaone
Here's what I would think:
Add 5 gates (2 can hold a 764), renumber so you have A13-A28 (A19-A28 is original gates on terminal A)
A1-A3 can hold CR9, E175 as high demand connection routes
A4-A6 are shuttles to LGA, and start to DCA, replace connection - M88
A7-A12 are connection to JFK, BWI, PHL, RDU, Bangor, Columbus, hold CR7 and smaller
A13 + A14 - 764 Service to AMS, LHR, and CDG - Compete with BA on LHR
A15-A22 - ATL, DTW, MSP, SLC, CVG, LAX, JFK
A23-A28 - PBI, FLL, MCO, TPA, RSW, TLH, JAX
Note: During on-season (school breaks) - 4x/daily, 2 737-800's (to each city)
During off-season (pretty much any other time), 2x daily, 1 737-800 to each city
Move CO to UA wing of terminal C, so they're set for their merger
Now that DL would have those daily flights, its worth renting one customs gate over at terminal E
Once CO is gone, open another CRC on the main terminal
All of that will require 4 new 764, 12 new 738, and about 100 new jobs, stimulating the economy. Maybe around $1.75 billion project. Well worth the investment.
Again, I disagree.
Let's look at the schedule for Monday, April 13 - a typical Monday.
-Delta/Northwest will have a total of 103 departures/105 arrivals that day.
-There are 15 mainline planes that overnight at BOS. 5 757s, 3 737-800s, an A320, an A319, and 5 MD-88s. This does not include the 2 Shuttle overnights.
Overnight is the only time all ten gates on the satellite will be used.
-There are also 2 large RJs that overnight at BOS (an E75 and a CRJ-900).
(I have the full BOS schedule as an Excel file should anyone want it...).
Based on these conclusions, there is no need for added room in the terminal. There are 11 gates that DL can use for the overnight departures - A4 and A13-A22. Given that the first four mainline flights depart by 605a at the latest (545 to ATL, 545 to CVG, 558 to DTW, 605 to MSP) and the last four overnights leave late (825a to ATL, 835a to BDA, 845a to RSW, 900a to DTW), you can easily tow these planes over to the aforementioned gates.
As for starting the Shuttle to DCA, it's been tried and failed. US owns that market, and DL has its niche running the CRJ 7 times a day down there.
As for international service, DL would be insanely stupid to start BOS-LHR. The market is way too saturated this summer, with AA running 3 767-300s, BA running 3 747/777s and Virgin running a 747. It's a route that would be a bloodbath for yields, and the premium cabins just aren't selling now like they used to. DL can find better uses for a 757/767 than BOS-LHR. For CDG, let AF have that route. DL gets 50% of the money anyway under the JV. 2x A340 is more than sufficient. As for AMS, the current setup of a A333 and a 757-200 is fine.
As for flights to LAX, I discussed that earlier. DL would be just as well to take a pile of money and set it on fire here. With JetBlue and Virgin on this route, it will be extremely low-yield.
As for Florida, Delta is moving away from Florida. This summer, for the first time since before I was born, Delta is running zero widebodies on MCO-ATL. You get a choice of 14 daily 757s on MCO-ATL, that's it. Delta is trying to rein in yields in Florida and let JetBlue/Southwest/AirTran/whoever else duke it out for the low-yielding families. As for JAX, DL tried and failed there - they did CRJs/CRJ-700s on that route until last May and pulled off. TLH will never work from BOS - they've been wanting a Washington and a New York route for years and that hasn't come to fruition. A CRJ on BOS-TLH is too much, let alone a 737. Much more efficient to route this traffic over ATL.
As for CO/UA merging, Larry Kellner said at the DO in IAH this past weekend that while it's a possibility, they want to see how the DL/NW merger plays out first. If it works and CO is at a disadvantage, then they'll reconsider merger. Till then, they'll go with the UA alliance. Also, about CO moving to UA's gates. Larry said that one of the things they will look at when moving is synergies with UA. At hubs where there's connecting traffic, it will make sense. However, at a station like BOS, where it will be all passengers starting or ending their journeys there (save maybe some cheap bargain hunters going SFO-BOS-EWR, etc.), there isn't much. CO just paid a good amount to redo the old CRC into a PC.