Originally Posted by
eponymous_coward
AA does next to zero international flying out of PHX, just LHR and Mexico, and moving PHX-Mexico flying to SEA would just be profoundly stupid.
Moving a bunch of AA PHX US domestic flying to SEA as a way to be "friendly" to AS by having them join oneworld connect... huh, do you usually try to beat your friends up and rob them? Because I don't. It would be also be profoundly stupid to get into a shooting war with AS AND DL over SEA as an alternate to PHX, at the same time when AA runs away from B6 and DL at JFK, a much larger hub, and when AA is ONLY dueling with WN in PHX.
I mean, really, AA is going to dehub PHX so they don't have to fly PHX-LAS because WN is eating their lunch, but they'll fly SEA-LAS (for example) so they compete against AS, WN, DL and NK? Really? What possible sense is giving up 40-50% market share just so you can fight again to get that market share back in a different city?
There is really no need to AA to do anything in SEA other than serve it from hubs. Done and dusted.
AA deciding to make SEA a hub as an alternate to PHX will be happening right around when AA orders 20 A380s for the NRT-LIT hourly shuttle.
Oneworld connect makes sense inasmuch as AA wouldn't have to do anything different than now, but AY/BA/CX/EI/QF could all have their existing relationships with AS cemented into something more solid. It probably doesn't happen unless AA wants it to, but AA doesn't have to change the existing partnership with AS at all on their side; they can decline to sponsor AS, AS elites would get bupkiss on AA (status quo), and AS would have to let AA elites get priority boarding and checkin (whoop-de-do), nothing else would need change.
AS is still a partner. If you can redeem AA miles for AS flights (you can) and AS miles for AA flights (you can), it's still a partnership.
I 'm a bit surprised how long it took someone to point this out. AA and AS are still partners and still code-share on many routes. Their previous stronger arrangement was largely discontinued over the terms of the merger with US; later on, when AS bout VX, it made a bit less sense, so it was somewhat reduced .
My thoughts (and I have no "official" information, would be that AA would likely not oppose AS entry into oneWorld, either as a oneWorld Connect or even as a full member, if the others were tp want not. There's still substantial benefits to that on the West Coast.