Sam I Am

Maybe they can add TSA PreCheck while they're at it?

FWAAA

I just looked thru the skimpy financials posted by VX and in the fourth quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012 (combined), VX burned thru $76 million of cash. On September 30, 2012, VX was down to $75 million of unrestricted cash. To compare, it had $160 million of unrestricted cash just nine months earlier on 12/31/11.

Unless VX had a much better 4th quarter than it did in 2011 and unless VX has a much better 1st quarter than it did in 2012, things could be very grim by March 31. If it can find more lenders willing to give it money to burn, then things may not be so grim.

N830MH

I have. We have been there at LAX last 7 years ago. It's too extremely overcrowded. The checkpoint lines is very short, but they didn't have wait for more than 10 minutes.

rasheed

VX is getting PreCheck this summer, so I am guessing that T3 will get it, but I just don't know where they will fit it since the security area is already tiny.

Rasheed

burlax

Noooo! T1 was so conveniently next door to PnF.

radiowell

I guess this move is null and void? Esp. in the light of the gate divestures at LAX?

PainCorp

Why would it be null and void? Two of the gates that were part of the agreement were in T3 according to reports:

Click me!

radiowell

Currently, US uses gates 6, 8, 10, 12 and maybe 4B at T1. I haven't seen 4B used by US in a while. If US has to give up 2 gates, how cost-effective is it to operate only 2 or 3 gates at a separate terminal? If AA/US wants to expand LAX more, I guess they need all the gates they can get.

FWAAA

The operative question is how many gates was US going to get when it moved to T-3? I saw somewhere else that US was going to get two gates at T-3, but that would seem to be a bit low given the six daily flights to PHL, six to CLT and seven to PHX. On the other hand, 19 flights spread out from 0600 to 0100 (that's 19 hours) shouldn't require more than two gates.

Of all the concessions made for the merger, this one and the LGA slots (new AA was already going to be much, much smaller than DL at LGA) are the most short-sighted, IMO.

Unless or until the LAX lawsuit settlement is overturned (by which LAX agreed with residents to reduce the number of gates), LAX gates are going to be very scarce. And I agree with you that new AA can use all it can get at LAX.

My prediction of the demise of VX was clearly premature, and thus those gates won't be available anytime soon.

No matter how you slice it - new AA needs to grow at LAX. Fortunately, AA will be getting the preferential use of four new gates at TBIT, allowing it to move the international widebody flights to TBIT.

eponymous_coward

You ever done a T3-T4 transfer at LAX? I have, as an AS->AA or AA->AS pax. It blows. It's one thing doing one going from two different airlines, entirely another to do them on one airline (nobody likes it when it's UA at SFO, or reclearing security at LGA when going between AA flights in different terminals). There was no way AA was going to want to split their operation between T3 and T4 (and besides, T3 is a dump, we called it T3rdWorld in the AS forum before we moved to LAX T6. Literally- there have been times where the sewage system has backed up in T3 ). So conceding those gates is easy for them.

FWAAA

Sure I have. When AA bought RenoAir in 1999, AA inherited a few gates in T-3. In 2001, when AA bought the assets of TWA, AA got even more gates in T-3. Even after AA shut down the T-3 operation, AA ran a bus to connect to Alaska flights when AS was in T-3.

Of course the split terminal operation isn't as nice as having all the gates in one or more buildings interconnected behind security.

But AA already runs a huge split operation at LAX: The American Eagle dump on the far east side of the airfield. To get there, you have to ride a bus that can take 10 to 15 minutes. There aren't enough of them and they don't operate with sufficient frequency. For "efficiency" reasons, they don't depart until they're over-stuffed with passengers. It's Los Angeles. What else is new?

PainCorp

They leave every 5 minutes, how much more frequently can you realistically have them?

Fanjet

Really? They have to give up 17 slot pairs at LGA. Five of which are currently leased to WN in the first place. So where on earth are they going to cut 12 flights at LGA??? I sure hope it's not from one of the 13 daily flights to PHL. And I would love for the current 5 daily AA flights to CLT to remain, so that they can complement the dozen or so US flights to there.

As for giving up two gates at LAX. If US was only getting two (or three gates) in T3, then what's the short-sightedness in this? Do you think AA having operations at T4, TBIT, Eagle Terminal, AND a couple of gates at T3 (with the only means of connecting T3 passengers being by bus) is a great strategy?? Sure AA needs more gates at LAX. But it needs them in a concentrated area (like UA has) and not spread out all over the airport property, having to shuttle passengers back and forth between them.

BoeingBoy

When you add the divestures required for this merger to the slot swap with DL, US/AA took a beating.

17 more slot pairs (34 slots) at LGA in addition to the 100+ traded to DL - new AA will have fewer slots than US had alone no long ago.

At DCA new AA will be down to about what US alone had prior to the slot swap.

So US/newAA ends up with the short straw at both.

Jim

aztimm

Mod note: this discussion is going way off track. This thread is intended for discussion of if/when/why/how US will move to T3 at LAX.

I have no idea what LGA or DCA has to do with this

If you'd like to discuss the US-AA merger, please do that in our dedicated thread:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/us-ai...eave-star.html

Thanks.


aztimm