"United to throttle down in Houston even as profits soar" - Houston Chronicle
Feb 29, 2016, 5:58 am
#31
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: SF Bay Area
Programs: None - previously UA
Posts: 4,867
DEN has been neglected for ages, and the Denver area economy is doing well, so I suspect it just makes good business sense.
Feb 29, 2016, 6:56 am
#32
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Houston
Programs: UA GS 2.6MM & Lifetime UC, Qantas Platinum, Hilton Lifetime Diamond, Bonvoy Platinum, HawaiianMiles
Posts: 8,700
Feb 29, 2016, 7:38 am
#34
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: New York, NY
Programs: UA, AA, DL, Hertz, Avis, National, Hyatt, Hilton, SPG, Marriott
Posts: 9,453
http://www.businesstraveller.com/new...-to-six-routes Houston - Rio
Feb 29, 2016, 8:21 am
#35
Join Date: May 2012
Programs: Delta Plat, UA Plat, Hilton Diamond, SPG Gold
Posts: 258
After the bust, it'll take a year or so to see more and more downsizing due to smaller companies going bankrupt(takes time). Everyone sees this coming and will strain the economy here...makes sense for united to not see growth coming. Lets just hope it doesn't get too out of hand.
Feb 29, 2016, 10:15 am
#36
Moderator, Omni, Omni/PR, Omni/Games, FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Between DCA and IAD
Programs: UA 1K MM; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 67,139
Except IAH is the only fully operational flight through winter (all relative). DEN, ORD, EWR and IAD are all prone to massive snow storms as we have seen this winter already. One snow storm and IAD and EWR are both shut down for days. SFO is plagued by fog a good part of the year so it's not ideal either.
Mar 3, 2016, 1:41 pm
#37
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 117
Most of UA's hubs are bad for weather related delays. ORD/EWR/SFO especially. IAH's flat growth is also affected since it's too far south for east/west connections and it's compounded by the local economy.
IAD should be expanded - EWR is the real problem in the network on many levels.
IAD should be expanded - EWR is the real problem in the network on many levels.
Mar 3, 2016, 4:32 pm
#38
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: san antonio, texas
Programs: 3.2MM AA, 1.4MM UA,StwdLftPlt
Posts: 1,586
Most of UA's hubs are bad for weather related delays. ORD/EWR/SFO especially. IAH's flat growth is also affected since it's too far south for east/west connections and it's compounded by the local economy.
IAD should be expanded - EWR is the real problem in the network on many levels.
IAD should be expanded - EWR is the real problem in the network on many levels.
Mar 3, 2016, 5:58 pm
#39
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: IAH
Programs: Marriott Plat, Hyatt Globalist, DL Plat, UA Silver
Posts: 4,043
UA is talking about growth at this time? Lol.
Does anyone have Southwest's # to show if it's actually Oil that's killing UA 100% or is WN grabbing the marketshare?
Yes oil hurts but people still have to fly.
Does anyone have Southwest's # to show if it's actually Oil that's killing UA 100% or is WN grabbing the marketshare?
Yes oil hurts but people still have to fly.
Mar 3, 2016, 9:11 pm
#40
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: IAH / HOU
Programs: UA GS, DL-Plat, Hilton Gold, IHG Platinum, Hyatt Somethingist, Marriott Titanium Lifetime
Posts: 2,853
There are LOTS of oilfield services people that are not traveling right now. Some aren't working at all but others have just throttled back. If they are based in Houston and don't have a field assignment then they do not still have to fly. They get to stay home.
Mar 3, 2016, 10:04 pm
#41
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: IAH
Programs: DL DM, Hyatt Ist-iest, Stariott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 12,792
WN is probably showing growth simply because they have opened so many more routes. If you exclude the international routes, the results might look similar.
Mar 3, 2016, 10:11 pm
#42
Moderator: Budget Travel forum & Credit Card Programs, FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: YYJ/YVR and back on Van Isle ....... for now
Programs: UA lifetime MM / *A Gold
Posts: 14,429
When I was looking at flights out to West Texas WN's fares from HOU-Midland were just as high with a free stop in Dallas, if not higher than UA's direct flight from IAH-Midland.
WN is probably showing growth simply because they have opened so many more routes. If you exclude the international routes, the results might look similar.
WN is probably showing growth simply because they have opened so many more routes. If you exclude the international routes, the results might look similar.
OTOH, Southwest effect is still with us, making the whole pricing thing something of an enigma
Mar 3, 2016, 10:56 pm
#43
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: IAH
Programs: DL DM, Hyatt Ist-iest, Stariott Platinum, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 12,792
or DL. But at some point WN management realized they had the reputation of being low cost, so why not raise prices and see if people noticed. Their decision to refuse to participate in Google flights and other OTAs hides their fares, so people still think WN is low cost when in reality many times it isn't, but most of them are too lazy to do 2 searches to find out the truth.Any trip I take I price via Google Flights and Southwest. Out of Houston, it is very rare that I find a flight that is cheaper on WN. If it is cheaper, it's because it requires a stop in DAL or ATL and there is usually a direct UA flight that is marginally more expensive. In that case I'll fly UA. Once in the past 3-4 years I've found a flight routing on WN out of HOU that was non-stop, cheaper than UA, and fit my time table. So I booked it and am flying it in June.
But as I mentioned on a previous page, the best thing about WN flying international routes from HOU is it has had a huge effect on lowering UA's fares from IAH. In December I went to Mexico on UA, same price as WN, and got CPU'd in both directions. Win Win.
Mar 4, 2016, 10:44 pm
#44
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 1999
Posts: 11,468
Except IAH is the only fully operational flight through winter (all relative). DEN, ORD, EWR and IAD are all prone to massive snow storms as we have seen this winter already. One snow storm and IAD and EWR are both shut down for days. SFO is plagued by fog a good part of the year so it's not ideal either.
IAH, of course, can fail in summer with the flooding and thunderstorms they get but these days are more rare than snow in the other hubs or fog in SFO.
IAH, of course, can fail in summer with the flooding and thunderstorms they get but these days are more rare than snow in the other hubs or fog in SFO.
Mar 5, 2016, 6:35 am
#45
Join Date: Jun 2014
Posts: 117
After the bust, it'll take a year or so to see more and more downsizing due to smaller companies going bankrupt(takes time). Everyone sees this coming and will strain the economy here...makes sense for united to not see growth coming. Lets just hope it doesn't get too out of hand.