PDX-NRT with 332 on the plan?
 

Post from Jetphotos.net.

In the Portland Business Journal, it said that Northwest Airlines is "eyeing" Portland as the next city to get service to Japan. Officials from NWA will visit PDX on the 23rd of September to meet with Port of Portland officials. Aircraft to be operated by A330-200.

That would be very cool for us PDXers!

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/...ml?t=printable

any additional service sounds good to me... but whatever happened to LAS<->NRT? I think the Las Vegas market is more lucrative for NWA than PDX

NW was suspended NRT-LAS service just because of unprofitability. NW had expected to sell this route with premium in Japanese group tour/non-published discount fare market, however, NW was enforced to price this route in same price range as other west-cost cities to compete with other airlines. And, this route had very poor C-class demand...

For NRT-PDX route, I think NW is expected to connect with DL network out of PDX.

Delta has no more of a "network" from PDX than does NW. Since DL dissolved the PDX mini-hub, both only feed their hubs from PDX. There is limited feed from Horizon and Alaska from PDX.

PDX would be a surprise, especially with it's proximity to SEA. I would think we would see BOS, MCO or even PHX before PDX.

LAS-NRT was suspended/discontinued primarily due to low yield. The load factors were high but with little manufacturing base in LAS, the cargo market (which can make or break an Asia flight) is non-existant. Cargo was trucked in from LAX to fill it and in the summer months there was a problem with weight restrictions. With the relatively high LAS elevation as well as the mountain range surrounding the valley, even the nearly 2 mile long runway at LAS isn't always enough.

JAL still operates NRT-LAS thrice weekly but
stops at LAX on the return...this helps with the problems NW faced and allows their passengers who visit LAS for 3-4 days a flight to the west coast. Primary places for Japan-US leisure travelers are: LAX (Disneyland), MCO (Disneyworld), HNL, LAS, BUF (Niagra Falls), SFO, and probably NYC.

Many of NW's partners run flights into PDX so there would be great opportunity to code-share and feed the route.
- Alaska, Horizon (via most of the west coast)
- Delta (via SLC, ATL, CVG, maybe bring JFK back?)
- Continental (via EWR & IAH)
- America West (via LAS, PHX)
- NW (via MSP, DTW, MEM?)

It might also encourage DL to add flights back in once the economy rebounds.

It might also encourage the long desired NW MEM->PDX direct.

It might also encourage NW to keep DWT->MSP direct year round (and perhaps add capacity).

This would be a great addition. As PDX is the only major area on the west coast without a direct to asia flight.

Go SkyTeam!


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doglover

As far as I know, San Diego doesn't have Asia service...

[This message has been edited by Marquette06 (edited 09-14-2003).]

DL's problem was not network feed to PDX, it was MD-11 fuel efficiency and the Deportland bad press in Japan. I agree with Vegas Agent, that there are cargo cities, and destination cities, that probably pencil out farther in the black than PDX. NW would be more likely to start a "direct" service via SEA than a n/s PDX/NRT. (Does NW have more NRT slots? Does DL have NRT slots it could revive?)

[This message has been edited by Eidetic (edited 09-14-2003).]

I Could be wrong, but I think UA and NW has unlimited slots in Tokyo.

Or am I mixing up with the unlimited slots and unlimited 5th freedom rights for NW/UA in Tokyo?

Slots are different from 5th freedom rights. 5th freedom rights are for a country as a whole on a treaty level. Slots are an airport administrative matter. There are beaucoup slots on the second NRT runway, but no extra ones on the main runway.

NRT's second runway has a wonderfully (?) Japanese history. First, the farmers refused to sell the necessary land, stalling the project for 30+ years, then construction started ... but a deal for one rice paddy right in the middle of the second runway fell through, leading to the need to extend the longer remaining parcel and preventing the use of wide-body a/c on the second runway. (To answer the obvious question, if the airport authority wanted to use eminent domain, they would have done so 30 years ago.)


[This message has been edited by Eidetic (edited 09-14-2003).]

Perhaps, but NW is strongly considering adding PDX ... and has asked local PDX businesses whether they will commit to supporting the route. So maybe their math pencils out differently? The lack of any other competition at PDX has to be a factor as well. While SEA and YVR (the nearest INTL airports) both have significant competition.

SEA already has an NRT direct on NW with a 742. What would be different under your statement above?

I think what they were suggesting was a flight using the same flight # & aircraft going PDX-SEA-NRT and return thus making it a "direct" flight, although not a "non-stop" flight.


K

Not sure why u would do that when Horizon flies to SEA practically every 30 minutes...

With the exception of Alaska/Horizon, why would one want to connect via PDX instead of an existing west coast gateway? Why would one want to fly BOS-EWR-PDX-NRT when they can just fly BOS-EWR-NRT?