Originally Posted by CALeeIII
Please forgive me if I missed this after several searches. I have been looking at itineraries for Birmingham (BHM) to Key West (EYW) on various dates. All itineraries come back through Atlanta or Atlanta AND Orlando. However, I can build the following itinerary leg by leg with about the same resulting price. I would certainly assume a 40-minute layover connecting from Chautauqua to Chautauqua would work. But, even if that was not a legal connection, you would think the over an hour connecting time on the return would pop up.
Any clue why the system doesn't offer this itinerary? Any drawback to building your own schedule?
It's because Chautauqua is not owned by Delta. To maximize Delta's revenue, they need to maximize mainline Delta revenue (the 737 from BHM-ATL -- low miles and high revenue on this route) and their subsidiary revenue (Comair).
Delta would allow you to fly via Chautauqua if there was no other mainline option.