Tag Archives: Love Field

The Battle of Dallas: Southwest Airlines fights to protect its Love Field turf from “invading” Virgin America despite Sir Richard Branson’s “love letter” to the city

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) according to this article by Bloomberg Businessweek, is playing “hardball” to protect its home turf at Dallas’ downtown Love Field. Upstart Virgin America (San Francisco), as we have reported, wants to sublease two gates at DAL from American Airlines (approved by the DOT) in order to start new service to key coastal markets. Virgin America, if it gains the two gates, with offer inflight amenities that Southwest does not offer its flyers at Love Field. Is Southwest afraid of Virgin America gaining a foothold in DAL?

Virgin America has brought in the “big gun”, i.e. Sir Richard Branson, who has been visiting and urging local leaders to approve the sublease from American Airlines to Virgin America. Branson has also “videoed” a love letter (see video below) to the city leaders and business interests. Southwest is pushing back claiming it can offer more flights to more markets with the two disputed gates. The city of Dallas will have to decide who gets the lease, either upset the local “hometown” airline or invite in a new strong competitor. There is a battle going on in Dallas that is heating up with the weather. Someone will win this gunfight and someone will lose it. The stakes are high.

Video:

Read the article: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. With “Lone Star One”, Southwest continues to remind Texans it is the airline of Texas, not an airline from the West Coast. Dallas is the new battleground for these two carriers. Who will prevail?

Southwest Airlines:

Virgin America:

Virgin America lands in Dallas Love Field to announce its new routes starting on October 13

Virgin America (San Francisco) today announced it is launching sales on its new business-friendly flights from Dallas’ Love Field (DAL) to New York’s LaGuardia Airport (LGA), Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The new flights take off in October 2014.

To announce the news today, the airline made a surprise landing with one of its custom-designed Airbus A320 aircraft at Love Field – where it is hosting an “open plane” event for media, Elevate® loyalty members, partners and social media fans.

According to the carrier, “Virgin America’s flights from DAL will bring needed fare and product competition to the market. At present, one carrier controls 80 percent of the Love Field gates (16 of 20) and more than 90 percent of the traffic. An August 2013 study conducted by Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers found that of airports in its size class, DAL had the largest increase in average fares from 2007-2012 – a 37% jump.

The addition of Love Field will significantly expand Virgin America’s presence in Texas. SFO, LAX and DCA to DAL flight service starts on October 13, 2014, and LGA to DAL flight service starts on October 28, 2014. The carrier’s initial Love Field nonstop flight schedule is as below:

In 2015, Virgin America plans to add an additional daily flight from DAL to SFO, LAX and DCA, bringing each route to four daily nonstop flights. In addition, the airline plans to add two new daily nonstop flights from DAL to Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) in 2015. Virgin America will move its current operations from Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) to DAL in October 2014.

The new routes will also expand Virgin America’s footprint in Washington D.C. and New York. In the last six months, the airline invested in assets being sold as part of the American Airlines merger settlement, including airport slots at LGA and DCA – both airports where access historically has been constrained and where consumers have had less fare and product competition as a result. Virgin America will be only the second low-cost airline to serve all three major New York-area airports.

What was left unstated, Virgin America is dropping service to Philadelphia (an US Airways, soon American Airlines fortress hub) after October 6 to free up the aircraft for the new DAL routes. US/AA will have less competition at PHL, not what the DOJ had in mind.

Copyright Photo: Jay Selman/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A320-214 N361VA (msn 5515) with Sharklets approaches the runway at Las Vegas.

Virgin America:

Route Map: New routes from DAL:

Video: Virgin America in 2 minutes:

Historic Photo of the Day – May 28, 2013

Braniff International Airways (1st) Boeing 707-138B N107BN (msn 18739) DAL (Bruce Drum). Image: 102890.

Braniff International Airways (1st):

Frameable Color Prints and Posters:

A behind the scenes view of the Southwest Airlines headquarters

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) has added a nice pictorial article on their blog that takes the reader on a virtual tour of their headquarters at Love Field in Dallas.

Read the nice article: CLICK HERE

It is always nice to see an airline remembering and embracing its history and culture. Well done WN.

Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum. It all started with these three Boeing 737-200s on June 18, 1971. 737-2H4 N21SW (msn 20345) and the two others are parked at the Southwest hangar at Love Field during a rare down time. In the beginning, the titles were on the rear fuselage and the tail.

Southwest Airlines:

Southwest Airlines is positioned to order larger Boeing 737-800s

Southwest Airlines Boeing 727-291 N406BN (msn 19991) DAL (Bruce Drum) (rare type, titles, logo), originally uploaded by Airliners Gallery.

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) is positioned to convert some of its Boeing 737-700s on order for larger 737-800s. The decision to bring the Boeing 737-800 into the WN fleet moved yet another step closer to reality yesterday as the Board of Directors for the Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Association (SWAPA), representing more than 5,800 Pilots, unanimously approved a tentative agreement reached with the Company. The tentative agreement will now be presented to the full SWAPA membership for a ratification vote.

If approved by a majority vote of the Pilots, their current contract will be extended by one year, becoming amendable August 31, 2012, and also include the potential for wage rate increases based on the Company’s financial performance.

Last month, the Executive Board of the Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 556, representing more than 9,700 Southwest Flight Attendants, unanimously approved a tentative agreement reached with the Company. The tentative agreement is currently being presented to all members of TWU 556 for a ratification vote.

Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum. This is not the first time WN has operated larger aircraft than the 737-700. Click on the historic photo for the full story.