BWI Airport News

[MasonsInquiries]

Originally Posted by Itus

Md. board assails deal with airlines
Officials angry BWI managers left $32 million uncollected

By Laura McCandlish | Sun reporter
May 22, 2008

The Board of Public Works berated airport management yesterday as the panel reluctantly approved a settlement reached with airlines that forgoes $32.2 million in undercharges for terminal rents, construction costs and fees at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport.

damn, $32 million missing? something like that just can't be justified......lol.

[Itus]

April 2008 Statistics ...not very good

TOTAL PASSENGERS 1691317 (domestic) 39580 (international) 1778748 -1.4% (% change over April 07)
TOTAL COMMERCIAL PASSENGERS 1730897 -1.8%

Scheduled International Passengers: 30434

Airlines Enplaned* Deplaned* Total % Change/07
SOUTHWEST 468215 467420 935635 1.1%
AIR TRAN 102179 103543 205722 8.0%
DELTA GROUP 57817 58781 116598 1.6%
US AIRWAYS GROUP 56490 55773 112263 -4.0%
UNITED 51473 50564 102037 -13.0%
AMERICAN GROUP 41068 41522 82590 -26.8%
NORTHWEST GROUP 35349 34424 69773 -5.8%
CONTINENTAL GROUP 27119 27899 55018 9.9%
USA 3000 5678 5916 11594 4.2%
BRITISH AIRWAYS 4261 4503 8764 -12.7%

Cargo

Airlines Enplaned* Deplaned* Total %Change/07
FEDEX 2204 2517 4721 8.0%
UPS 949 904 1853 -18.4%
SOUTHWEST 373 444 817 10.5%
DHL/ASTAR 159 230 389 -5.8%
BRITISH AIRWAYS 115 79 194 325.3%

Stats from www.bwiairport.com
-----------
The BA flight continues its downfall in passenger numbers (I suppose also attributed to the lack of an April Easter holiday, the higher pricing/weak dollar, industry downturn, etc), but as with last month, cargo is looking better. As a note, BA served over 10500 passengers at BWI during April of 2006.

Load factor for the BA flight -- 80.7%

Cargo on this flight is far better than last year. April '08 still trails February and March '08 considerably though. That may just be a seasonal event.

[30 Floors Up]

Bayrunner Shuttle adds roundtrips to Ocean City

Baltimore Business Journal - by Ryan Sharrow Staff

The Bayrunner Shuttle, a daily transportation service from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport to the Eastern Shore, is expanding.

Beginning Thursday, the Bayrunner is extending its ground shuttle route to include five daily roundtrips to both Ocean Pines and Ocean City.

The Bayrunner's current schedule of seven daily trips to Salisbury, Cambridge and Easton will remain unchanged.

The Ocean Pines route will depart from the Rite Aid at the community's south gate. The Ocean City stop will be at the West Ocean City park and ride lot on Route 50.

A one-way route on the shuttle from Ocean City to BWI on Friday costs riders $95, according to Bayrunner's Web site.

[Itus]

As expected, with American leaving the route soon:

AirTran Airways Announces New Service From Baltimore/Washington to San Juan - Low Fare Airline Adds Additional Flights from Atlanta and Orlando to San Juan -

ORLANDO, Fla., June 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AAI), announced today that it will add nonstop flights between Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport beginning December 20, 2008. Additionally, the low-fare airline will offer a second daily flight between Orlando and San Juan beginning November 2, 2008, and a second daily flight between Atlanta and San Juan beginning December 18, 2008. All flights to San Juan will be served with the airline's popular and fuel-efficient Boeing 737-700 aircraft, part of America's youngest all-Boeing fleet.

Despite the difficult fuel environment, AirTran Airways has added additional nonstop flights for Baltimore/Washington area residents to San Juan, a popular vacation destination, said Kevin Healy, senior vice president of marketing and planning for AirTran Airways. Whether travelers are looking for a Caribbean vacation or going home to visit family, we are happy to provide them with convenient flights and easy booking on airtran.com.

With the new service, AirTran Airways will offer 19 nonstop destinations from Baltimore/Washington, eight of them popular vacation destinations in Florida and Puerto Rico.

The following nonstop flight options will be available between Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, for travel effective December 20, 2008, as noted below:

Nonstop flights between Baltimore/Washington and San Juan, effective
December 20, 2008

From To Flight Departs Arrives Frequency

Baltimore/ San Juan 52* 10:50 a.m. 3:35 p.m.** Sat, Sun
Washington

San Juan Baltimore/ 53* 4:20 p.m.** 7:05 p.m. Sat, Sun
Washington
* Effective December 20, 2008 through January 4, 2009, and February 28, 2009 and beyond.

** Due to Daylight Savings Time, arrival and departure times at San Juan are one hour earlier, effective March 8, 2009.

The following nonstop flight options will be available between Orlando International Airport and San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, for travel effective November 2, 2008, as noted below:

Nonstop flights between Orlando and San Juan, effective
November 2, 2008

From To Flight Departs Arrives Frequency
Orlando San Juan 630 10:50 a.m. 2:35 p.m.** Daily
Orlando San Juan 3 1:40 p.m. 5:25 p.m.** Daily
San Juan Orlando 628 3:20 p.m.** 5:25 p.m. Daily
San Juan Orlando 4 5:10 p.m.** 8:15 p.m. Daily
**Due to Daylight Savings Time, arrival and departure times at San Juan are one hour earlier, effective March 8, 2009.

The following nonstop flight options will be available between Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, for travel effective December 18, 2008, as noted below:

Nonstop flights between Atlanta and San Juan, effective
December 18, 2008

From To Flight Departs Arrives Frequency
Atlanta San Juan 5 9:40 a.m. 2:10 p.m.** Daily
Atlanta San Juan 21 11:10 a.m. 3:40 p.m.** Daily
San Juan Atlanta 6 2:45 p.m.** 5:50 p.m. Daily
San Juan Atlanta 32 4:30 p.m.** 7:35 p.m. Daily
**Due to Daylight Savings Time, arrival and departure times at San Juan are one hour earlier, effective March 8, 2009.

AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings, Inc., a Fortune 1000 company, ranked number one in the 2008 Airline Quality Rating study. The airline offers more than 700 affordable, daily flights to 58 U.S. destinations, employs 8,900 friendly Crew Members and operates America's youngest all-Boeing fleet. AirTran Airways also provides XM Satellite Radio and Business Class seating on every flight. For more information and free online booking, visit airtran.com.

Media Contacts: AirTran Airways
Tad Hutcheson
Judy Graham-Weaver
Cynthia Tinsley-Douglas
Quinnie Jenkins
678.254.7442

SOURCE AirTran Airways



http://pressroom.airtran.com/phoenix...502&highlight=

[k25150]

I wish AT would pick up the BWI to LAX route that Southwest abandoned.

[Itus]

Originally Posted by k25150

I wish AT would pick up the BWI to LAX route that Southwest abandoned.

AirTran operates two daily nonstop flights to LAX now...at least for the summer. I do wish they would just go ahead and make the LAX and SEA flights year round already!

[k25150]

Oh really? Didn't know that. I wish they had better times for the Seattle flights. Isn't it like a 7:50 pm departure from here and a 10 pm from there?

[Itus]

As of this summer there are two flights to Seattle:

FL 224 - 7:00am - 9:48am
FL 227 - 7:59pm - 10:47pm

Return from Seattle:

FL243 - 10:30am - 6:20pm
FL229 - 11:30pm - 7:20am


But it all disappears by the time September rolls around, apparently. I punched in some codes at http://timetables.oag.com/bwi/

[Itus]

According to this article, American Airlines will cancel the BWI-St. Louis flights some time by the end of the year. This will leave Southwest operating alone on the route. This also follows AA's cancellation of the BWI-SJU flight.

American cuts 30 more flights out of Lambert
By Tim Logan
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/26/2008

It's going to get harder to get places by air.

On Wednesday, we started to find out just how much harder.

American Airlines said it will slash 30 flights a day from its schedule at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport this fall, part of a systemwide cutback announced last month to help it cope with a crippling surge in oil prices.

From St. Louis, American will end direct flights to four airports, among them Baltimore and New York's JFK International Airport, and will trim flights to at least 15 more, from Seattle to Boston, Dayton to Des Moines.

All told, after the cuts take effect late in November, Lambert's biggest airline and its regional affiliates will have 116 daily flights from St. Louis, down from 146 at the start of June, and down sharply from the 207 it had after massive cutbacks in 2003. And with oil prices topping $130 a barrel, analysts say, there's no sign that the robust air service St. Louis knew for decades will return any time soon.

...[more in the link below]

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/bus...1?OpenDocument

--------------
Today (6/26) American Eagle flies twice from BWI to STL on Embraer aircraft. Southwest Airlines has five flights from BWI to STL.

[Itus]

http://www.swamedia.com/about_swa/pr...ht_changes.pdf

Changes effective November 2:

BWI - Albuquerque: - 1 daily flight / new total: 1 daily flight (seasonal adjustment)
BWI - Denver: +1 daily / new total: 4 daily
BWI - Norfolk: -1 daily / new total: 4 daily
BWI - West Palm Beach: +1 daily / new total: 4 daily (seasonal adjustment)

[Silver Springer]

So Itus, what do you think BWI can do to boost it's international flights? I think one of ways that will happen is if they bring more large companies to City of Baltimore and that will have a chain reaction.

I still think BWI does well though, it can hold it's own. It's the better bargain, don't know more people don't go there. I hope Southwest goes international soon, if Delta merges I do not see it any other way.

[Itus]

There are probably a number of ways...I'm monitoring it from an international business perspective in the sense that we have to build more on our base of international companies operating in the Baltimore area, alongside Baltimore companies who need to expand operations abroad (which is why I created the thread on Baltimore international business).

A faster way is probably to get Southwest or Airtran to enter into an alliance with a foreign carrier(s). I'm not sure why either doesn't really have such agreements to begin with, but at least they're looking to expand internationally through other carriers.

A while back I think MAA officials told the media that they were hoping foreign carriers operating at Dulles, who were looking at adding a flight or two to the area, would consider adding that extra flight at BWI. They were looking at Newark/JFK..I think that approach doesn't make much sense here. I'm not sure what the costs are to open up a new station like BWI, but it seems unnecessary if they wanted to add flights to Dulles. Maybe it would help if BWI was marketed as Baltimore's airport to the carriers that already operate at Dulles. If, for example, Lufthansa saw BWI as a second DC airport, they probably would see no need to add service to a second airport belonging to a city that the airline already served. For carriers that don't already operate at Dulles, maybe the opposite works better--marketing BWI as a DC airport. Japan Airlines (JAL) I think used to operate at Dulles but left after competition from All Nippon Airways (ANA) and other reasons. Since JAL doesn't have a DC gateway, maybe they would be interested in BWI. Possibly the same would work with Korean Air at Dulles and Asiana Airlines (also Korean) at BWI, although this doesn't make much sense given Asiana's affiliation with the Star Alliance. Asiana would prefer Dulles.

Also...we need the airline industry to be pretty strong to get a lot of carriers willing to expand anyway...so fuel costs have to be manageable, or new aircraft like the 787 or A350 need to be super fuel efficient to make a lot of new routes appealing.

That's all I can think of right now.

[Itus]

Oddly enough, American looks like it's keeping its daily BWI-San Juan flight from November onwards, using a 737-800 instead of the 757 it has been using.

[Itus]

Southwest Airlines teaming with WestJet to fly international skies
Baltimore Business Journal

Southwest Airlines Co. is planning to add international flights through a partnership with WestJet, a Canadian carrier.

Southwest and WestJet plan to announce codeshare flight schedules and additional features of the partnership by late 2009. Certain details of the codeshare and elements of the partnership are subject to approvals by both the U.S. and Canadian governments, the airlines said.

The partnership would mark Southwest's return to international skies. Dallas-based Southwest (NYSE: LUV) had a codeshare agreement with ATA Airlines Inc. to fly to Mexico and the Caribbean before ATA shut down and filed for bankruptcy in April.

Southwest is the dominant carrier at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, controlling about half of BWI's market share.

The codeshare agreement with WestJet will eventually allow the carriers to check customers and their baggage on each others' flights. The codeshare partnership is intended to provide convenient, viable connecting schedules.

In addition, Southwest's Web site will sell WestJet's flights.

"A company's dedication to culture and customer service are very high on our priority list when considering a relationship of any kind," Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said in a statement. "We are confident that we've found a perfect fit with WestJet, and we are excited to work toward opening our expansive U.S. network to include Canadian destinations."

WestJet CEO Sean Durfy called the airline's proposed agreement with Southwest a "defining moment" for WestJet.

"It marks an important step forward for our guests and their ability to fly to more destinations in the United States conveniently and cost effectively," said Durfy. "When you examine our network in Canada and Southwest's network in the United States, and the potential to significantly improve both organization's market access, this is indeed a great day."

Calgary, Alberta-based WestJet was founded in 1996 as a western Canadian regional carrier with three aircraft flying to five cities. It now flies to 49 destinations in Canada, the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean. The airline operates a fleet of 75 Boeing 737-series aircraft. It plans to add 46 more aircraft to its fleet to 121 by 2013.

Southwest Airlines currently serves 64 cities in 32 states. It operates more than 3,400 flights a day and has more than 34,000 employees systemwide.

http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore...ml?jst=b_ln_hl

[Ty Doggie]

This is really sobering

[Itus]

Southwest, WestJet link
Code sharing will bring added international service to BWI
By Laura McCandlish | Sun reporter
July 9, 2008

Southwest Airlines announced yesterday that it would link up with Canadian low-cost carrier WestJet, its first concrete step in launching the international service it has talked up for years.

Selling seats on each other's planes by late 2009 under a so-called code-sharing arrangement will grant the two airlines access to new customers with little additional cost, provided the agreement gains regulatory approval from U.S. and Canadian authorities. Calgary-based WestJet, which modeled its operations and corporate culture on Southwest when it started up in 1996, offers service to 49 destinations in Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico and the United States.

The airlines said routes and other details won't be announced until late next year.

Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, where Southwest is the dominant carrier, hopes WestJet will start flights there under the partnership. BWI has been bleeding international flights in recent years. Air Canada offers daily flights to Toronto, but BWI has demand for nonstop routes to Montreal and Calgary, two routes that WestJet serves, airport spokesman Jonathan Dean said.

"BWI will work with both Southwest and WestJet to make the case for new service," Dean said. "It's good news that Southwest is moving ahead with its plans."

The WestJet partnership comes after Southwest lost its partner ATA Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy in April. Southwest was to expand its partnership with Indianapolis-based ATA to offer service to Mexico, the Caribbean and Canada by 2009. The ATA partnership did offer passengers service to Hawaii, a coveted destination that Southwest doesn't serve.

From Canada, WestJet flies to three locations in Hawaii, but Southwest passengers won't likely be able to access those destinations, said Whitney Eichinger, a spokeswoman for the Dallas-based airline. Federal aviation guidelines bar foreign carriers from flying between U.S. markets.

Neither Southwest nor WestJet would disclose details about how the partnership would affect routes, flight schedules and fares. But WestJet's existing flights will soon be available for purchase on Southwest's Web site and the carriers are considering the integration of their frequent-flier programs, ground operations and air cargo services.

Like Southwest, WestJet already operates a fleet of all Boeing 737-series aircraft and remains profitable despite the onset of record-high fuel prices. WestJet has 75 planes in its fleetand plans to add 46 aircraft by 2013. Southwest had 527 Boeing 737s in its fleet as of May.

What WestJet won't add is routes to Europe or Asia, because long intercontinental flights aren't possible on 737 planes, said Richard Bartrem, a spokesman for WestJet.

Because it's nearly impossible for a U.S. carrier to merge with a foreign airline, a code-share marketing arrangement is an easier and cheaper way for an airline to gain access to international markets, said Bob Harrell, a New York-based airline analyst.

"You get some of the benefits of running a single operation but none of the complications," said Harrell, president of Harrell Associates, a travel industry consulting group. "WestJet is a Southwest clone basically. There's a lot of synergy between the philosophical approaches of both businesses."

Speaking at BWI a year ago, Southwest CEO Gary C. Kelly said the airline also expected to offer codeshare connections to Europe by 2010. But yesterday Southwest wouldn't confirm at what date a partnership with a European carrier might materialize.

"Our first interest is going to be in that near-international - Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean," Eichinger said. "Once we get those up and running, then the next step would be to look at other international service. But we're not there yet."

laura.mccandlish@baltsun.com

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business...,7204543.story

[Itus]

BWI sets passenger traffic record for May
Baltimore Business Journal - by Scott Dance Staff

Despite turmoil in the airline industry and tightened travelers' wallets, Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport is keeping up a record traffic pace.

The airport flew 1.9 million commercial passengers in May, the most ever flown in that month and 1.8 percent more than in May 2007.

Top carrier Southwest Airlines continued to dominate traffic numbers, while No. 2 AirTran Airways continued to be the fastest-growing carrier. Southwest flew 1 million passengers in May, 1.5 percent more than in May 2007. And AirTran flew 271,000 people, 28 percent more than in May 2007.

For the most recent twelve months, from June 2007 to May 2008, traffic is up 3.8 percent at BWI to 21.4 million, narrowly making it the busiest 12-month period in the airport's history. The airport had two consecutive record years in 2006 and 2007, with 20.7 million and 21 million, respectively.

[PeterSmith]

I'm glad to hear that Southwest was able to solidify some kind of partnership, even if it won't add European or Asian flights (are flights to Asia even a realistic goal for BWI right now?). Maybe the partnership will provide some clout for attracting a European partner. Good news for BWI.

[NorthaBmore]

BWI still needs more international flights! I probably use Dulles just as much as BWI because there just aren't enough flights out of BWI!

[rockin'.baltimorean]

Originally Posted by Itus

BWI sets passenger traffic record for May
Baltimore Business Journal - by Scott Dance Staff

Despite turmoil in the airline industry and tightened travelers' wallets, Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport is keeping up a record traffic pace.

The airport flew 1.9 million commercial passengers in May, the most ever flown in that month and 1.8 percent more than in May 2007.

Top carrier Southwest Airlines continued to dominate traffic numbers, while No. 2 AirTran Airways continued to be the fastest-growing carrier. Southwest flew 1 million passengers in May, 1.5 percent more than in May 2007. And AirTran flew 271,000 people, 28 percent more than in May 2007.

For the most recent twelve months, from June 2007 to May 2008, traffic is up 3.8 percent at BWI to 21.4 million, narrowly making it the busiest 12-month period in the airport's history. The airport had two consecutive record years in 2006 and 2007, with 20.7 million and 21 million, respectively.

good for BWI!!

for a minute there, i thought our airport was fading off.....