WN and the North East

[bravodude]

Does SW have any plans on flying in the NY/NJ area! I would think they could stand to make alot of money.

 

[LearLove]

NY/NJ area = PHL and ISP.

before PHL I bet TTN, ABE and ACY were considered but they went out of the box going to PHL thinking it would be the final nail (at the time) in the US Air coffin.

 

[luckytohaveajob]

NY/NJ area = PHL and ISP.

A 75 mile drive through some of America's most congested roads is not worth $100 cheaper fare.

 

[SWA GUY]

I bet TTN, ABE and ACY were considered but they went out of the box going to PHL thinking it would be the final nail (at the time) in the US Air coffin.

Lear,

WN did not go to PHL to put the nail in USAir's coffin, we went to PHL to make money. That's what we do.

8 million+ people in the greater PHL area needed a LCC, we provide that.

FWIW, PHL is the most successful city that WN has EVER opened.

 

[bravodude]

yeah but do you think SW will try to go to ewr or jfk.

 

[aa73]

I think they should go to LGA... and I'll bet they even get ATC priority there, too! "SW 1271, taxi down 4, left turn onto 13 and back taxi into position and hold, you're now number 1. All other aircraft - Parke, Biggy, Coate, Eliot, Lanna, White and Wavey departures are still shut down."

 

[bravodude]

I think they should go to LGA... and I'll bet they even get ATC priority there, too! "SW 1271, taxi down 4, left turn onto 13 and back taxi into position and hold, you're now number 1. All other aircraft - Parke, Biggy, Coate, Eliot, Lanna, White and Wavey departures are still shut down."

i have to admit that was funny!

 

[skiandsurf]

I think they should go to LGA... and I'll bet they even get ATC priority there, too! "SW 1271, taxi down 4, left turn onto 13 and back taxi into position and hold, you're now number 1. All other aircraft - Parke, Biggy, Coate, Eliot, Lanna, White and Wavey departures are still shut down."

I was going into ORF one night, we were left downwind 3000' abeam the tower, and told that we were "number 2 behind Southwest, on a 15 mile straight in". I could not believe what I was hearing.

 

[717capt]

The 8+ million people in the PHL area already had an LCC. AirTran had about 30 flights a day out of PHL before WN came to town and the plan was to add more. I guess management didn't want to expand the 4th largest O&D market in the country at that time and basically rolled over and didn't want all the gates that PHL airport offered. I guess they thought that the gates were just going to sit empty and the airport would come begging for AirTran to take the gates for free. Of course at the time AirTran was in the middle of the whole MDW/ATA thing so maybe that had something to do with it. By the way someone posted earlier that PHL was the most succesful city that WN ever opened. I recall reading that somewhere also. I found out a few weeks ago that the most succesful city airtran had ever opened since the start of the airline and made money since day one and continues to make money to this day was CLT. Just thought that was interesting. I would not have guessed.

 

[StopNTSing]

I was going into ORF one night, we were left downwind 3000' abeam the tower, and told that we were "number 2 behind Southwest, on a 15 mile straight in". I could not believe what I was hearing.

I wish I would get preferrential handing by ATC as often as some guys think we do.

 

[firstthird]

I was going into ORF one night, we were left downwind 3000' abeam the tower, and told that we were "number 2 behind Southwest, on a 15 mile straight in". I could not believe what I was hearing.

SWA's 10-7 for ORF talks about needing to be at least 2000 feet (or something close, working from memory here) before you turn/intercept final for noise abatement reasons. If you were at 3000 abeam, then you'd have needed to go another 5 - 6 miles to turn base if you were really going to be at 2000 feet (assume 3 miles per 1000 feet standard profile) to meet the noise abatement procedure. And, by then SWA would have been at 10 or 9 miles out with you at 6 miles out. Or something like that. That's my theory at least. Or maybe it is because SWA sends all the tower controllers christmas bonuses?

 

[75M]

SWA's 10-7 for ORF talks about needing to be at least 2000 feet

You don't have to get down to be "at least 2000 feet".

 

[Mach 80]

When there is weather shtting down initial routes, the SW dispatchers often file flight plans with the first 100 miles flown at something like 8,000' bypassing high altitude clogged ceneter airspace. Few other airlines take the trouble to do this. Further, when SWA is asked to do an 'immediate' or turn a short final to accomodate traffic, they do it. Many other airlines say "no' or when asked to do an 'immediate', they don't, or when told cleared for take-off they take their sweet time. Guess what? - behave like that enough and the controllers know who they can count on to get something done and fill a hole....and who can't.

 

[canyonblue]

..........the controllers know who they can count on to get something done and fill a hole....and who can't.

I wonder if some airlines fully understand the meaning of "be ready for an immediate takeoff". ATC knows who will or won't be ready.

 

[717capt]

Also as a side note to the above post a lot has to do with the airplane as well as the airline/crew flying it. Commuting to work and having to ride in the 737 jumpseat every once and a while I have noticed that the engines are a little more responsive and things happen faster when the throttles are pushed up. The 717 unfortuneatly doesn't respond that fast. The particular EEC's that we have on the Rolls Royce engines run through about a million checks before they allow the engines to come up to take off thrust. Thats why sometimes if you happen to notice when a 717 is cleared for takeoff it takes a few seconds for the aircraft to start moving. I have noticed that the A319/320's are like that was well. Seems that all other aircraft, particularly the 737's are more responsive. I won't even get into how long it takes us to start the dang engine.

 

[Slug]

What is funny is that 98% of the pilots at SWA think that "if I don't get cleared for an immediate, I'm cutting into my profit sharing" and its TRUE!

 

[firstthird]

You don't have to get down to be "at least 2000 feet".

I'm sorry, I probably wasn't clear in my earlier post. To be at 2000 feet on final means being 6 miles from the field assuming a semi-stabilized approach. The problem isn't getting 'down' from 3000 to 2000, it is getting from abeam the field to a point 6 miles away from the field. The ORF note is unusual in both the altitude and the way it states not to intercept final inside the FAF, meaning no short turns off a close in base leg. Which is why a controller might clear a guy on a straight in 15 mile final before one on a high abeam position. Asking the guy on the high abeam to turn before the long final guy is basically telling him to ignore the noise abatement restriction. Is that more clear?

 

[Saluki Dawg]

To answer the original question. I'm sure if we could secure the appropriate number of slots and gates, we'd start serving LGA tomorrow. I think that Gary Kelly is very interested in LGA, BOS, and DCA. If DL/US were to move forward with their merger, Gary has already stated that we are VERY interested in acquiring one of the Shuttles that would have to be divested. So, I would say that there is a better than 50% chance we will be going to LGA within the next 5 years. As for EWR, never say never, but I think we'd prefer LGA or JFK over EWR if given a choice. Again JMO.

 

[Whine Lover]

http://southwest.com/travel_center/routemap_dyn.html


- LGA

- DCA


Service via proxy. For now...


YKW

 

[bravodude]

To answer the original question. I'm sure if we could secure the appropriate number of slots and gates, we'd start serving LGA tomorrow. I think that Gary Kelly is very interested in LGA, BOS, and DCA. If DL/US were to move forward with their merger, Gary has already stated that we are VERY interested in acquiring one of the Shuttles that would have to be divested. So, I would say that there is a better than 50% chance we will be going to LGA within the next 5 years. As for EWR, never say never, but I think we'd prefer LGA or JFK over EWR if given a choice. Again JMO.

Thanks alot for your answer.