Originally Posted by ND76

For those of us east of DC, IAD might as well be in another state. I live 62 miles from IAD, and, in the rush hour, it can take over 2 hours to get from here to there. In fact, believe it or not it often is shorter in time to drive 40 miles out of the way, out I-70 to Frederick, then down US 15 past Leesburg to the Dulles Greeneway toll road. When I fly out of IAD, it is either (1) an early morning flight and I drive my van out there the night before and sleep in the parking lot or (2) an AF or KL flight in the early evening and I drive to IAD around 2 p.m. and miss the evening rush. I'd hate to have to rely on IAD as my every day airport.

As far as the comparative hubs are concerned:

1. DL at JFK; UA/CO at EWR. This is a push--although UA/CO have a better terminal at EWR, the landing field at EWR stinks. JFK is slightly better as a landing/takeoff point.

2. UA/CO at IAD; DL at ATL. I've heard it said that IAD is in competition with both ATL and CLT. IAD is rounding into a great airport--a new N/S runway is being constructed (there are three major non-intersecting runways already); the new aerotrain is running; the new Silver Line on the Washington Metro is supposed to be at IAD by 2016 (the line will open up to Reston by 2013). Unhappily for those of us who live north and east of the Potomac, the incredibly poor regional road system we've inherited together with local political paralysis means that they won't build new bridges over the Potomac until the 22nd century at the earliest. It is much easier for me to drive to BWI or even DCA and connect on DL through ATL, JFK, DTW or SLC than to go to IAD and take a UA/CO non-stop.

ATL is the world's largest hub, and, despite all the criticisms, rumors and innuendo, works remarkably well. I'm happy with Delta's facilities there and after almost 30 years know my way around the airport.

3. UA/CO at ORD and CLE; DL at DTW and CVG. DTW has a better landing/ takeoff field for hub operations than ORD; CVG has an incredibly good airfield compared to CLE, which is a pre-jet age field where the runways cross. DTW is at least as good a terminal as ORD; each has a convenient and very good airport hotel; ORD has the CTA; DTW has freeways (ORD is adjacent to the Jane Addams Northwest and Tri-State tollways).

4. UA/CO at IAH vs. DL at MSP and MEM. I've only been to IAH once, but really liked CO's terminal there. All three of these airports have good to excellent airfields for hub operations.

5. UA at DEN vs. DL at SLC. DEN is state of the art, but its roof always seems in danger of collapse. Both airports have congested security entrances that are really crowded at peak periods. DEN was built to compete with ATL and ORD for hub traffic. SLC has rounded into a nice airfield with the completion of the second long N/S runway west of the terminal. SLC is very easy to navigate, despite having four concourses; the only blight is the regional jet complex at concourse E. The local transit authority is building a light rail line to SLC and hopes to have it done by 2013. DEN is out in the middle of nowhere; to put it in context, the Maryland State House in Annapolis is closer to BWI than the Colorado State Capitol in downtown Denver is to DEN.

6. UA at SFO vs. DL at either LAX or SEA. 24 years ago, DL inherited Western Airlines' hub at LAX, and wound up with what was then a beautifully reconstructed Terminal 5 to go with Terminal 6, where DL had its operations before the merger. Delta proceeded to dismantle Western's operation at LAX, ceding north-south traffic to the likes of Southwest and Alaska. As a native of northern California, I've always viewed LAX as an unlikeable pit; its only saving grace was that it was a short taxi or bus ride away from Hollywood Park.

As for SFO, there was sadness as Bay Meadows, 8 miles south in San Mateo, was torn down after the 2008 racing season. However, UA enjoys excellent facilities at SFO between its reconstructed domestic concourse in the main terminal and the beautiful new international terminal which was built virtually overhead the existing plant. The BART rapid transit train is convenient to both UA's domestic and international operations, as is the Rube Goldberg-like inter-terminal train that serves the parking garages and the rental car center.

Plus, San Francisco is 100 times the city that Los Angeles will ever be. There, I said it.

Turning to SEA, where DL is somewhere between a focus city and a mini-hub, I've always thought that SEA was a neat airport; sadly, DL closed their Crown Room club with the incredible view of Mount Rainier. However, the facilities that DL inherited from NW are more than adequate. DL's code-shares with Alaska and Horizon make this an important airport in the Delta network.

Conclusion:

Delta has two of the three best hubs east of the Mississippi in ATL and DTW. UA's best facility (although not its major hub) in this territory is IAD.

UA/CO trail DL in the Florida markets. DL ceded Texas to AA, WN and CO when it de-hubbed DFW.

DL competes with ORD as a hub at DTW, MSP and MEM.

In the inter-mountain west, DL at SLC competes successfully with UA/CO at DEN.

In the west, UA has a better operation at SFO than DL at LAX/SEA combined.

Fire away.