Originally Posted by
JetBlueFA
Gone
CVG
MSP
MSP is considered a "fortress hub."
Regardless of what other hubs the merged carrier may keep or drop, I expect them to keep MSP. Northwest dominates MSP with a 67% market share. That's a big asset that Northwest brings to the merger. I can't see them giving that up.
With a Google search, I found this interesting article from earlier this year:
http://www.tradingmarkets.com/.site/...20News/984251/
The article begins:
A merger between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines could begin a dramatic reshaping of the aviation industry but lead to only small changes in the importance of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to the combined carrier.
The reason is simple: Northwest makes a lot of money in the Twin Cities, a situation no suitor will want to alter.
A paragraph later in the article comments about Northwest's 67% market share at MSP:
That kind of dominance makes it easier to make profits. People who fly from MSP pay an average of 21 percent more than fliers taking comparable trips from other U.S. airports, according to the research of Gerchick-Murphy Associates, a Washington-based airline consulting firm.
Also, keep in mind that Northwest kept MSP and DTW, before, during, and after Northwest's Chapter 11 reorganization.
Northwest has an estimated 60% market share and a spectacular new terminal at DTW.
Northwest brings these two airports, where their dominant market share allows them to charge more, to the merger. They're not just hubs; they're also big origin and destination markets.
I can see the merged carrier reducing service at CVG and MEM, due to redundancy with DTW and ATL. Even at CVG and MEM, the merged carrier is likely to try to keep a dominant market position.