LAX_AUS_DL_FLYER

I mean, you could say the same thing about B6 and their recent EWR build up to a Focus City during COVID-19. I just think UA is so weak at RSW and TPA that there's zero chance of success out of the starting gate. However, I would give them a decent chance of some sort of success on BOS-MCO/FLL because of how they have always been relatively strong as a mainline carrier at those airports to make it work. Expect some major print advertising for these routes as well (since most of the public isn't going to be aware of any of this.)

FlyngSvyr

Sorry, have to disagree on banning Florida flights. These flight changes may have been on the radar long before COVID was a reality. Even if they were not, we are still in a free country with a free market. United is just providing a service for customers that want it. Apparently there is a need.

The virus is here, it's going to work it's way around the nation & we have to learn to live with it until it is no longer a concern. Airline flights are probably one of the LEAST ways that it is transmitted. Everyone is wearing masks now & HEPA filtration of the air is a huge reason why. Now MOVING an infected person from one area to another may be a possibility, but if that person is practicing proper protocols on either end, that should mitigate the risk of them transmitting the virus further.

EWR764

The horse is miles and miles and miles out of the barn, and even places that have aggressively worked to restrict entry (e.g., Hawaii) are seeing increases in the rate of transmission. Florida's rate is down, new cases are down, and I don't see these flights as anything more than a bet FL will be in a good place by the winter, and people will feel comfortable visiting in large numbers. Reasonable minds certainly can disagree as to this point, but I think it's worth putting a line in the water. United's bread-and-butter is gone for at least another 6-8 months, so it needs to adapt its network strategy.

HNLbasedFlyer

It isn't a trivial exercise at an airline to start new routes with cost justifications, passenger projections, marketing - making the pitch and ultimately getting it approved, let alone the size and scale if these new routes. Will be interesting to see if the analytics they've used actually pan out - Ankit Gupta has made a big bet, hopefully it works out.

Not everyone flying from those cities are tourists - lots of snowbirds and extended family going back and forth to Florida in wintertime. I also think UA doesn't foresee Hawaii opening anytime soon, and part of the forecast might be capturing some of that leisure travelers who move those trips from Hawaii to Florida.

PV_Premier

Very strange given the current optics. I guess the thinking is that like NYC, eventually FL pressures of CV19 will wane, and the demand will resurface as people get sick of winter in the northeast.

I am surprised they didn't go for some more flights into EYW. Profit margins and ticket prices into/out of EYW are huge in the winter and a huge amount of the current traffic is likely connecting given the limited number of destinations served. The E170s are good on the short runway.

kevflyer

If you want the most direct route... WS has(had?) seasonal YVR-MIA, but that's brutal in Y-only 737s.

From YVR, AC only flies direct to EWR in the eastern part of US (and ORD if you consider it east) so definitely not any of these new cities that'll service FL.
Yes AC services all of them from YYZ (at least; more for BOS LGA and PIT);

Yep. Too bad I was never able to fly that. Scheduled the last YVR-JFK on schedule but the route was yanked early.

ctownflyer

My take is that this isn't about demand (fares from EWR to all 4 FL cities were just $13 after tax!), but retaliation against B6 for encroaching into EWR and adding the MINT transcons. And perhaps to a lessor extent, their new NYC/BOS partnership with AA.

B6 just recently added CLE-RSW and was the only non-ULCC to fly CLE-FLL year-round. I sure hope UA doesn't chase them out, only to abandon CLE yet again.

nerdbirdsjc

Even prior to COVID, nonstop flying between the T250 or so O&D city pairs (by traffic volume) was on its way to becoming the new normal for 2020s USA air travel. Transiting crowded, delay prone hubs when you don't have to wasn't popular outside of the FTer set in the past, and with sharply reduced flight schedules and the indoor health risks it darn sure isn't appealing now.

United's hubsites are naturally home to a large chunk of the T250 O&D city pairs, an advantage not shared by most of the Delta and AA hubs. The expanded flying essentially leverages idle planes and underutilized outstation real estate to make a few more bucks. Smart move at fairly low economic risk.

st3

I agree but even in the hottest part of the year people are still coming here. If flying isn't viable they will just drive. I see it on social media and literally every time I leave the house.

Between the insatiable desire to come here, a wholly incompetent government, and fellow residents that engage in unnecessary activities we are definitely knee-deep in it.


Hard disagree. I can't speak for the other airports but the routes being added to TPA are all served with direct, non-stop service by at least one other carrier. I'm not sure what the lead time is on something like this but definitely not a decision made around the water cooler yesterday afternoon.

buckeyefanflyer

Could crew change in Florida also UA operates Airbus MKE- DEN could get the crew from they routing. MKE-ORD all Express.

cfischer

This makes zero sense from BOS. Super competitive market. Not sure why UA has done that

ctownflyer

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FlyingNone

Why?.... it's so competitive with Delta, American, Jet Blue, Southwest and Spirit. Sickly, elderly east coast northerners would be crazy to fly to Florida - one of the worst states for Covid-19...., and what families are going to Orlando (if they have Disneyworld in mind?). No jobs, no money, worried about their kids' and their own health, schooling, etc.
Really, United thinks this is great idea for a three month "winter" seasonal window? Lockdowns, masks all the way around, a lot of sightseeing and restaurants closed plus, plus, plus. A friend who just moved (retired) down there invited us to visit. My husband and I just laughed at the idea -- not on a bet. (We are 70 and older).

COSPILOT

I think you are wise in doing so. My wife hasn’t spent real quality time with her parents since this whole thing started. They still see each other, but with distance and masks.

Personally I’ve got zero desire to go anywhere for now, and I haven’t flown since February. Partially because of Covid, but also because things like Disney World just don’t sound like fun right now. I love Disney but it just wouldn’t be the same. No parades, shortened hours, and apparently no fireworks every evening.

I do understand the snowbird people though, and maybe that market is huge?

buckeyefanflyer

They were flying into ETW the past few years from EWR,ORD,IAD and IAH but suspended flights with the scares act situation. EYW got hammered with just about everything closed. Still got Silver out of FLL and a few other cities..