FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - DL Encroaches Further on AS' Turf - Master Thread
Old Oct 1, 2013, 7:32 pm
  #14  
golfingboy
Ambassador: Alaska Airlines
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
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Originally Posted by beckoa

DL also has more of these smaller regional a/c on order too, but primaraly for replacement of CRJ200's.
Not quite, DL has 100 739ERs that they are going to start receiving them now.. 12 by the end of the year then 19 planes every year through 2017. They also have the A321s and A330s on order. DL's mainline orderbook is bigger than the entire AS fleet including QX and that does not include the E-Jet order.

Quite frankly AS is small potatoes compared to WN, DL, UA, and the new AA if the merger goes through.

Those airlines are vastly bigger and much more versatile than AS when it comes to expanding into new markets and shifting things around.

I think DL is piggy backing on AS right now as they build their customer base in SEA and the west coast (they are expanding LAX too) then when they feel their west coast network is strong and established with a solid customer base, there is no point for them to keep AS then they will dump AS. It is business, they are not there to be sentimental or get all cutesy with competitors, they are there to make money. Screwing AS wouldn't be the first time, DL screwed many of their SkyTeam partners in recent months. Again, all speculation, we will see in a couple of years. All of this recent development is certainly intriguing.

WRT to Hawaii service, it is not just AS, Hawaiian has expanded a lot, and I figure DL felt they weren't in a good position to compete in the low yielding high volume Hawaii market and elected to downsize the service.

Last edited by golfingboy; Oct 1, 2013 at 9:17 pm
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