Originally Posted by
UA_Flyer
You made the same point I was going to make.
Being a South Florida resident since early 80s, I have witnessed various stages of air travel change.
When UA purchased Pan Am's Latin American operations in Miami back in the early to mid 90s, there were a fleet of widebodies and multiple flights between MIA and UA hub cities.
As an example:
763 between JFK and MIA
741 (later 777) between SFO and MIA
777 between IAD-MIA, LAX-MIA, DEN-MIA, ORD-MIA
There were 727/757 flights between DCA-MIA, LGA/EWR-MIA, ATL-MIA, BOS-MIA
There were multiple flights between IAD, ORD, DEN, LAX and MIA.
RCC@ MIA was the best in the system with open bar and a full buffet (not the current crackers and cheese).
There were all mostly driven by international traffic not domestic leisure traffic between hubs and MIA.
Exactly, and in most cases the widebody domestic flights operated as through service to South America (EZE, GRU, GIG, SCL), timing with northbound arrivals in the morning and southbound departures in the late evening. Even the narrowbody flights to non-hub airports (LGA, EWR, ATL, DCA) were essentially just a late night/early AM bank to feed the South America longhauls. Some exceptions, here and there, as the MIA operation evolved in the 90s, but I agree, the "premium" service was either local international or connection-oriented.