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Dallas Mrng News: AA Drops Prices To MO
[FONT=verdana, arial, helvetica]Trip to Missouri gets cheaper
Wright amendment change is ahead; some airfares already reduced
12:00 AM CST on Wednesday, November 23, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
With President Bush expected to sign a bill exempting Missouri from Wright amendment flight restrictions next week, carriers are poised for a low-fare showdown.
Indeed, a fare war between Southwest Airlines Co. and American Airlines Inc. appears to have begun already.
Fort Worth-based American quietly lowered its fares from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to both St. Louis and Kansas City around Oct. 20, the carrier said Tuesday.
Southwest said last week that it plans to serve both cities from Dallas Love Field, its home airport.
American regularly competes against Southwest fares within the eight-state Wright perimeter that limits the Dallas-based discounter at Love.
American may also decide to start using its three gates at Love.
When priced in previous months, American round-trip tickets for last-minute travel between D/FW and St. Louis frequently exceeded $800.
Fares topped $1,000 between D/FW and Kansas City.
Now, the round-trip fare for travel next week is $377.40 to St. Louis and $526.40 to Kansas City. Both figures include taxes.
Comparisons for travel this week are difficult; flights are sold out for the holiday weekend.
American says that its lower Missouri fares resulted from its own review of the markets and that they were unrelated to the Missouri provision, which gained momentum in Congress last month.:laugh:
"We did this on our own," said American spokesman Tim Smith. :uzi:
The St. Louis and Kansas City reductions "came out of requests by our marketing people" in those cities, Mr. Smith said.
uke:
American lowered business fares from D/FW to both Nashville and Oklahoma City earlier this year, after concluding that it was missing some traffic that could fly over its network with lower fares.
During Senate subcommittee hearings on the Wright fight on Nov. 10, Southwest chairman Herb Kelleher said his carrier's walk-up fares to St. Louis would be $129 one-way, while American was charging $599.
After the hearing, American protested Mr. Kelleher's fare data, saying its lowest one-way walk-up fare was $253.[/FONT]
[FONT=verdana, arial, helvetica]Trip to Missouri gets cheaper
Wright amendment change is ahead; some airfares already reduced
12:00 AM CST on Wednesday, November 23, 2005
By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News
With President Bush expected to sign a bill exempting Missouri from Wright amendment flight restrictions next week, carriers are poised for a low-fare showdown.
Indeed, a fare war between Southwest Airlines Co. and American Airlines Inc. appears to have begun already.
Fort Worth-based American quietly lowered its fares from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to both St. Louis and Kansas City around Oct. 20, the carrier said Tuesday.
Southwest said last week that it plans to serve both cities from Dallas Love Field, its home airport.
American regularly competes against Southwest fares within the eight-state Wright perimeter that limits the Dallas-based discounter at Love.
American may also decide to start using its three gates at Love.
When priced in previous months, American round-trip tickets for last-minute travel between D/FW and St. Louis frequently exceeded $800.
Fares topped $1,000 between D/FW and Kansas City.
Now, the round-trip fare for travel next week is $377.40 to St. Louis and $526.40 to Kansas City. Both figures include taxes.
Comparisons for travel this week are difficult; flights are sold out for the holiday weekend.
American says that its lower Missouri fares resulted from its own review of the markets and that they were unrelated to the Missouri provision, which gained momentum in Congress last month.:laugh:
"We did this on our own," said American spokesman Tim Smith. :uzi:
The St. Louis and Kansas City reductions "came out of requests by our marketing people" in those cities, Mr. Smith said.
uke: American lowered business fares from D/FW to both Nashville and Oklahoma City earlier this year, after concluding that it was missing some traffic that could fly over its network with lower fares.
During Senate subcommittee hearings on the Wright fight on Nov. 10, Southwest chairman Herb Kelleher said his carrier's walk-up fares to St. Louis would be $129 one-way, while American was charging $599.
After the hearing, American protested Mr. Kelleher's fare data, saying its lowest one-way walk-up fare was $253.[/FONT]
