Originally Posted by
italdesign
It could be my ignorance, but some seem puzzling. I can understand not many people go to Eugene or some places in Montana in the winter. But Santa Barbara stops after Jan 6? Seems like a pretty good destination in winter, much warmer than most. No Jackson Hole, a popular ski destination, after Sep 6-ish? What are these decisions based on? (empirical evidence I hope, but the outcome is puzzling).
SBA is a difficult airport at the best of times, it has very little service. There is some traffic DEN-SBA in winter but not enough to make decent money.
Conversely, PSP - Palm Springs - is a bonanza in winter but falls off a cliff in summer because of the heat.
Similarly, there is no leisure market for Alaska in winter. Frontier tried DEN-ANC one winter and was getting 30% loads.
Q1 - deep winter - has always been a financial sink-hole for Frontier and this year they are doing something about it. The CEO yesterday defined the profitable (domestic) winter flying as Florida, Texas and Arizona.
They have been prepared to nurse some routes through winter - SBA, e.g. - but this year the problem is compounded by the fact they are taking aircraft put of the fleet in order to install new seats.