Don't just dump profitable routes. This is not a game. If they are profitable airlines keep them. It's not rocket science. If BKK is so great, why has SAS dropped it, AF and LH reduced? Think about it.
If DL ever gets a good relationship with KE, I bet they'll drop BKK in a second. Low fare low yield tourist routes aren't money makers man. And that's nice you couldn't upgrade. Most of the people up front were either on cheap paid tix or mileage redemptions.
DL flies it because they have no good partner to share revenue with. United shares revenue with nh on every ticket to BKK from the us and nh rearranged their schedule at NRT to connect to UA. DL doesn't have that relationship with anybody. Also, UA had better uses for that airplane. Delta apparently does not.
To your suggestion below that united simply wants to "shrink out of existence"- ridiculous. How does adding new flights to Santiago Chile and Chengdu square with that? Adding IAH-MUC? Restarting sfo-TPE? Yeah. No
Originally Posted by
Always Flyin
Anyone who thinks NRT-BKK was not profitable for UA doesn't understand the route.
It was always notoriously difficult for upgrades (so passengers were paying for the premium cabins) and fares were not cheap.
If it was not profitable, why is DL still flying it? Look at the long list of airlines flying to BKK. Think they are doing it solely for the prestige?
Comparing any airline to TG's profitability demonstrates an utter lack of understanding of Thai politics and Thai airline operations.
TG is not profitable because it is a corrupt, mismanaged airline run by former Air Force officers with no airline experience and is run for the benefit of Elvis' family and the politicians who fly for free in premium cabins with their families and earn frequent flier miles on those free tickets. Ask yourself why it is that TG refuses to bring in professional management from outside Thailand?
The bottom line is that anyone here who posts that BKK was not profitable for UA has no legitimate basis for that statement. Even UA never said it.