Southwest starting BWI to San Jose Costa Rica
- Thread starter Kingairer
- Start date
e6bflyer
Well-Known Member
It's a stepping stone. Costa Rica is going to be a gateway to South 'Murica. They are going to allow us to use it as a through destination. I am honestly surprised they snuck this announcement in there without much fanfare.
A lot of these guys (especially the non-AirTran types) have been doing domestic only for a long time, but like Zap said above, there is plenty of international experience here. Also, let's face it...it ain't rocket surgery. Yes, it presents it's own set of challenges, but it's just not that hard.
A lot of these guys (especially the non-AirTran types) have been doing domestic only for a long time, but like Zap said above, there is plenty of international experience here. Also, let's face it...it ain't rocket surgery. Yes, it presents it's own set of challenges, but it's just not that hard.
SlumTodd_Millionaire
Most Hated Member
A "through destination?" As if it wasn't bad enough making three stops to get where you're going in the states. 
ChasenSFO
hen teaser
They're only a few cents per average seat/mile behind the legacies(minus bag fees, of course), where as Spirit and Allegiant are a few dollars behind. With that in mind, I'd think they'll take more pax from the legacies than anything else.
It really irks me looking at the SFO T1 departures screen when I walk into the terminal and seeing Southwest post 20+ cities they don't fly non-stop to since they're all "direct" flights. Sure Delta and US Airways will have a handful, but Southwest dominates the board with these. I wonder how many people even do the SFO-LAS-OKC-BWI-MHT type flights, can't be much cheaper than one stop on the legacies.A "through destination?" As if it wasn't bad enough making three stops to get where you're going in the states.
falconvalley
Absentee Dad of the OOTSK, Runner, Cat Frustrator
The only connection between Howard and Ramsey, in my eyes, is the fact that they talk about money.
JustinS
Well-Known Member
And that's the only connection I made too... That and I've read a lot of discussion from people on here with the same sentiments towards Dave Ramsey...
MusketeerMan
Well-Known Member
Love me some Dave Ramsey.
nabbyfan
Well-Known Member
A couple months ago I saw a bag tagged through SFO-PWM. Stopping in ATL, FLL, and BWI... Same plane service. The ramp crew wasnt even sure what bin to throw it in because we don't normally have bags more than 2 down line cities away. Bet the poor passenger had a fun day with that!
We also routinely get SFO-BUR or ONT bags with a transfer in LAS or PHX. Thats the one I really don't get.
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kellwolf
Piece of Trash
I almost count SWA as a legacy now. Their pricing is about the same (minus bag fees, which will likely show up soon), and they even treat their employees the same as legacies do now. I was looking at flights from SLC-MCO for a friend, and DELTA was $100 cheaper than SWA for a non-stop. SWA was either swapping planes in DEN, BWI or a two city connect. Anyone that thinks this is the same airline it was 10 years ago just hasn't been paying attention. On a lot of routes, they are no longer the cheapest. They're relying on people to assume they are and go straight to the website to buy tickets without comparing them to other airlines. Labor issues are WAY worse than when I was there a decade ago, and they're trying to grab market share in areas they swore they'd never deal with because of the hassle of delays, weather and competition. Then there's the AirTran debacle.
Have to give credit to their marketing department, though. Of all the "new international routes" they've announced lately, at least this one likely IS new. The rest have all been AirTran routes that they've slapped a SWA 737 on and said it was new.
Have to give credit to their marketing department, though. Of all the "new international routes" they've announced lately, at least this one likely IS new. The rest have all been AirTran routes that they've slapped a SWA 737 on and said it was new.
Autothrust Blue
Welcome aboard the Washington State Ferries
The difference is that Delta happens to have a flight that goes to (say) Atlanta, and then the same number continues on to Hartford, whereas at the purple airplane factory, this is by design.
JPilot9
Well-Known Member
When people talk about "the days before people were herded like cattle", these type routes were much more common.
ChasenSFO
hen teaser
Very true. But given the choice, I don't see why anyone except a person on a mileage run would ever do that.
e6bflyer
Well-Known Member
Most people don't. I don't have any statistics right now, but my anecdotal observation is that the only time we have a significant amount of through passengers is on Wright runs (DAL-OKC-MDW) or flights that don't service big cities and their choices are limited. Even on those, more than 30 through passengers is a lot.
People are going to do whatever is cheapest and meets their pain threshold. If our SFO-LAS-HOU is similarly priced and maybe they get a free bag thrown in plus Hobby is 30 minutes closer to their house, then they probably choose SWA. Otherwise, why the heck would they? I wouldn't and I work there.
This isn't 1985, people are super cost conscious and it is very easy to shop around with the internet. I don't sell the tickets, I just fly them around, but I can tell you that the planes are generally still full, even in September. There are some exceptions. I flew around 25 people from PHX-SFO a few weeks ago, but for the most part, we are 80-90 percent full all the time.
As for Costa Rica, I would look for it to be a jumping off point to South America. Plus, we are flying empty planes down there and back all the time anyway to do heavy maintenance.
Love southwest, hate it, I don't care. They are poised to grow in the next decade and the lower 48 are just about tapped out.
People are going to do whatever is cheapest and meets their pain threshold. If our SFO-LAS-HOU is similarly priced and maybe they get a free bag thrown in plus Hobby is 30 minutes closer to their house, then they probably choose SWA. Otherwise, why the heck would they? I wouldn't and I work there.
This isn't 1985, people are super cost conscious and it is very easy to shop around with the internet. I don't sell the tickets, I just fly them around, but I can tell you that the planes are generally still full, even in September. There are some exceptions. I flew around 25 people from PHX-SFO a few weeks ago, but for the most part, we are 80-90 percent full all the time.
As for Costa Rica, I would look for it to be a jumping off point to South America. Plus, we are flying empty planes down there and back all the time anyway to do heavy maintenance.
Love southwest, hate it, I don't care. They are poised to grow in the next decade and the lower 48 are just about tapped out.
SlumTodd_Millionaire
Most Hated Member
Want to place a wager on that?
ZapBrannigan
If it ain’t a Boeing, I’m not going. No choice.
He's a newhire ATN. Lay off for a while. He has a right to excited and optimistic without you being a fun smasher.
SlumTodd_Millionaire
Most Hated Member
Pretty sure this is an open discussion, so he definitely doesn't have a right to not have a dissenting opinion expressed. If you don't like it, you're welcome to disagree.
I use a monster mega bank and a credit union. I like my credit union, but don't be fooled, they have some 'gotchas' too.