Originally Posted by
lg20
Surprised they would actually be bidding on an all Airbus carrier
Fleet commonality is only a small piece of the puzzle. And frankly, it's negligible in the grand scheme of things.
Strategically, this would be a huge advantage. Having another hub is worth quite a bit. SEA is under pressure from DL, and having another hub will insulate AS a bit if things get worse there.
Further, SFO is much more strategically placed than SEA for a higher volume of traffic. In addition to giving them access to the Bay Area population, they would gain access to a lot of Southern Cal. population via connections. While still out of the way, SFO is a lot more logical a connection than SEA for many of the East-West flows.
When you look at the alternative -- let B6 have VX and build a massive bi-coastal niche carrier, leaving AS up in SEA with the majority of the route network not viable for those who don't live in AK or the PNW, while a trendy carrier grows, that's not a good thing for AS.
The best outcome is for AS to get VX, and fortify itself as a solid West Coast player in the second and third largest West Coast markets (in addition to the LAX focus). Oh, and hopefully learn a thing or two about IFE and service in the process.