30 more markets in 2018?
#31
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: SEA
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#32
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Portland, Oregon
Programs: Hilton Platinum, Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 2,363
I'm surprised that there's not a thread here related to the quarterly earnings call. In particular, Skift had an article about it and led with the angle of AS expansion:
https://skift.com/2017/07/27/alaska-...rkets-by-2018/
As someone who has one foot out the AS door due to the AA changes, this is certainly intriguing. If this expansion can get me to more places I need for business travel, I may reconsider.
https://skift.com/2017/07/27/alaska-...rkets-by-2018/
As someone who has one foot out the AS door due to the AA changes, this is certainly intriguing. If this expansion can get me to more places I need for business travel, I may reconsider.
30 new markets? (meaning new cities entirely?) Say Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Providence, Charlotte, Miami ? Probably the largest markets without ANY Alaska service. (Or maybe even Toronto and some other North American markets Alaska does not serve?)
Or 30 new city pairs? Basically taking SFO/LAX and adding flights to most of the current Seattle destinations that SFO does not have (i.e. Milwaukee, Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, etc.)
How is Portland - my city - going to fair in any of this? My bet is not much, they'll want to route us through Seattle or SFO is my best guess.
#33
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Ewa Beach, Hawaii
Posts: 10,909
So what does this really mean?
30 new markets? (meaning new cities entirely?) Say Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Providence, Charlotte, Miami ? Probably the largest markets without ANY Alaska service. (Or maybe even Toronto and some other North American markets Alaska does not serve?)
Or 30 new city pairs? Basically taking SFO/LAX and adding flights to most of the current Seattle destinations that SFO does not have (i.e. Milwaukee, Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, etc.)
How is Portland - my city - going to fair in any of this? My bet is not much, they'll want to route us through Seattle or SFO is my best guess.
30 new markets? (meaning new cities entirely?) Say Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Providence, Charlotte, Miami ? Probably the largest markets without ANY Alaska service. (Or maybe even Toronto and some other North American markets Alaska does not serve?)
Or 30 new city pairs? Basically taking SFO/LAX and adding flights to most of the current Seattle destinations that SFO does not have (i.e. Milwaukee, Kansas City, St. Louis, Nashville, etc.)
How is Portland - my city - going to fair in any of this? My bet is not much, they'll want to route us through Seattle or SFO is my best guess.
#34
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 702
When using the term "markets" that doesn't specifically mean new cities; it can be new cities, connecting existing dots on the map, or a combination of both.
I'd expect it's more about connecting existing dots that will be occurring in the near future.
I'd expect it's more about connecting existing dots that will be occurring in the near future.
#35
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Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: home = LAX
Posts: 25,933
Yes, not really clear, is it? But they are using the same terminology as the 20 markets added already. Were those new cities or new routes? If all new cities then it would stand to reason the 30 is 30 new cities. If routes then could be new routes, if a mix of new cities and new routes could be a mix. Would love for PR departments to be clearer in their announcements.
The routes can be to existing cities or to new cities, but if there's significant new cities, the airlines tends to announce "new destinations", not just "new markets".
#36
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: Portland, Oregon
Programs: Hilton Platinum, Alaska MVP Gold
Posts: 2,363
Please read the whole thread. This was already asked and explained above that markets to an airline means routes, not cities. Cities are called destinations, not markets, by airlines.
The routes can be to existing cities or to new cities, but if there's significant new cities, the airlines tends to announce "new destinations", not just "new markets".
The routes can be to existing cities or to new cities, but if there's significant new cities, the airlines tends to announce "new destinations", not just "new markets".
#37
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,639
The whole thing is intentionally unclear. It keeps the chatter and allows something completely non-specific to fester. Horizon can't even find enough pilots to complete its schedule so its hard to really believe there is any real expansion, new markets. etc. Some of us would like Alaska to just concentrate on its pre-merger route system and stop cancelling those flights at the expense of these new flights.
#38
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The whole thing is intentionally unclear. It keeps the chatter and allows something completely non-specific to fester. Horizon can't even find enough pilots to complete its schedule so its hard to really believe there is any real expansion, new markets. etc. Some of us would like Alaska to just concentrate on its pre-merger route system and stop cancelling those flights at the expense of these new flights.
#39
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: SEA
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I highly doubt anything like doubt would be happening. QX is a separate airline under a separate operating certificate, yes, but the Horizon logo hasn't been in the big letters on the side of the planes for years. And there's no "new market!" fuss when, for example, PDX-AUS switches from OO-operated to AS mainline. Because that would be silly.
#40
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,639
RJ pilots and mainline pilots are generally non-interchangeable. And thus Horizon and Alaska pilots are presumably non-interchangeable. And so they can't use an ample supply of Alaska pilots to fix the Horizon pilot shortage, even though they can use it to create new Alaska mainline routes, unless perhaps some of the new mainline routes they're creating replace Horizon routes. Please note: Since Alaska and Horizon are semi-separate airlines, a route that used to be Horizon and now is Alaska could be called a "new" route from the Alaska perspective.
Edit: PDX-AUS, SEA-SBA; any other routes going from QX/OO to AS? Aside from the few random Sept/Oct flights on PDX-OAK, PDX-SMF
Last edited by ucdtim17; Jul 31, 2017 at 9:00 pm
#41
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Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Ewa Beach, Hawaii
Posts: 10,909
Please read the whole thread. This was already asked and explained above that markets to an airline means routes, not cities. Cities are called destinations, not markets, by airlines.
The routes can be to existing cities or to new cities, but if there's significant new cities, the airlines tends to announce "new destinations", not just "new markets".
The routes can be to existing cities or to new cities, but if there's significant new cities, the airlines tends to announce "new destinations", not just "new markets".
#44
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: San Juan, PR
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Posts: 428
What would it take to make SEA-YUL SEA-YYZ happen? I've never found a good option for this; I flew AA and it was horrible, the other options (AC and UA) are horrible and earn no AS miles. SFO-YYZ SFO-YUL on VX or AS would be fine too.