MEMPHIS | Development News

[BG918]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

Sadly, the situation within the airline industry is a different story now.

Southwest is no longer the low fare carrier they used to be famous for. Their dismantling of the AirTran hub in Atlanta has done nothing for us, as many expected lower fares and more flights. The opposite has actually happened.

While we are very fortunate to have Delta's mega-hub here, I personally miss having AirTran as a true option to them.

Southwest is slowly destroying AirTran's former hub and raising prices across the board. They are also cutting cities that we used to have service to, and dramatically reducing frequency to those that remain. This has turned out to not really be a merger at all, but more the elimination of a competitor and a way to gain a couple of gates in Atlanta.

Very true regarding Southwest. However you now have Spirit growing in many markets, which is a true low cost airline. However expect a "cheap" product compared to American, Delta, etc. with high fees for everything. Frontier is going this direction, and you have Virgin America trying a version of it as well. There is room for more IMO.

Back to Memphis, I flew into their airport several times to connect on Northwest in the late 90's. I was living in Tulsa and they had a couple daily non-stops which I used to then connect to cities on the east coast via MEM. Sadly both OKC and Tulsa will lose their daily Delta flights to MEM at the end of this month.

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by BG918

Very true regarding Southwest. However you now have Spirit growing in many markets, which is a true low cost airline. However expect a "cheap" product compared to American, Delta, etc. with high fees for everything. Frontier is going this direction, and you have Virgin America trying a version of it as well. There is room for more IMO.

So true re: Spirit and their fees, BG918. I recently booked someone on them from Dallas to Denver, and the add-on fees turned out to be higher than the actual fare! They even charge $40 now for carry-ons. They charge for advance seat selection too, and aisle & window seats cost extra. They have become the Ryanair of the U.S., pretty much.

I really like Virgin America, and hope they make it - but their finances are sketchy, and their L.A./San Francisco focus hurts them. I have a gut feeling Frontier isn't going to make it.

I know this is the Memphis thread, and I apologize for all of this off-topic airline talk. I wish only the best for Memphis and their airport going forward. Good luck, guys.

[Johnny Ryall]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

I know this is the Memphis thread, and I apologize for all of this off-topic airline talk. I wish only the best for Memphis and their airport going forward. Good luck, guys.

Absolutely not. This conversation as relates to MEM is very interesting and relative to Memphis development. It has been a huge issue for the community and everyone is looking at other cities & airlines as examples to move forward with. Memphis was proud to be an airline hub for the past 3 decades with Republic/ Northwest/ Delta, but Delta's endgame just got kind of ugly. The city's economy is tied in many, many ways to the airport. More so than a lot of other cities especially when considering freight/cargo ops.

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by Johnny Ryall

Absolutely not. This conversation as relates to MEM is very interesting and relative to Memphis development. It has been a huge issue for the community and everyone is looking at other cities & airlines as examples to move forward with. Memphis was proud to be an airline hub for the past 3 decades with Republic/ Northwest/ Delta, but Delta's endgame just got kind of ugly. The city's economy is tied in many, many ways to the airport. More so than a lot of other cities especially when considering freight/cargo ops.

Thanks, Johnny!

I was worried that some may think I was hijacking the thread.

[Dr Nevergold]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

So true re: Spirit and their fees, BG918. I recently booked someone on them from Dallas to Denver, and the add-on fees turned out to be higher than the actual fare! They even charge $40 now for carry-ons. They charge for advance seat selection too, and aisle & window seats cost extra. They have become the Ryanair of the U.S., pretty much.

I really like Virgin America, and hope they make it - but their finances are sketchy, and their L.A./San Francisco focus hurts them. I have a gut feeling Frontier isn't going to make it.

I know this is the Memphis thread, and I apologize for all of this off-topic airline talk. I wish only the best for Memphis and their airport going forward. Good luck, guys.

Even Spirit Airlines is expensive relative to RyanAir... Its like the hassle of the nickle and diming experience of RyanAir with only marginal savings. Considering how awful Spirit's customer service is in case problems occur (and their lack of large network to fly you around problems), I think its worth spending $50-$100 more and just going for a traditional airliner.

I have questions about RyanAir's long term viability anyway. They treat their workers like crap, and I don't think that is fair, and I think flying should be a little more than dirt cheap. Its literally 25 pounds to fly without baggage between many airports across Europe.

There's gotta be some level of middle ground, however, here in the USA where we just get more competition going. And competition isn't going to come from more and more consolidation. I hope the government blocks the American-US Airways deal, its horrible for consumers. Never would I have imagined in only a few short years we'd end up with only 4 (soon to be 3 if they approve merger) traditional airliners, and a smattering of "discounter" mostly domestic airliners with average ticket prices through the roof.

If this were the year 1999 I may be on the other end of this argument, but i'm pragmatic and think its just way too far in the other direction in 2013.

[atlantaguy]

Originally Posted by Brandon716

Even Spirit Airlines is expensive relative to RyanAir... Its like the hassle of the nickle and diming experience of RyanAir with only marginal savings. Considering how awful Spirit's customer service is in case problems occur (and their lack of large network to fly you around problems), I think its worth spending $50-$100 more and just going for a traditional airliner.

I have questions about RyanAir's long term viability anyway. They treat their workers like crap, and I don't think that is fair, and I think flying should be a little more than dirt cheap. Its literally 25 pounds to fly without baggage between many airports across Europe.

There's gotta be some level of middle ground, however, here in the USA where we just get more competition going. And competition isn't going to come from more and more consolidation. I hope the government blocks the American-US Airways deal, its horrible for consumers. Never would I have imagined in only a few short years we'd end up with only 4 (soon to be 3 if they approve merger) traditional airliners, and a smattering of "discounter" mostly domestic airliners with average ticket prices through the roof.

If this were the year 1999 I may be on the other end of this argument, but i'm pragmatic and think its just way too far in the other direction in 2013.

I could not agree with you more on all points, Brandon. I absolutely refuse to book anyone on Spirit unless they insist, and then I warn them repeatedly that they are basically on their own if anything goes wrong. Unlike the legacy carriers, travel agents have pretty much zero influence or sway with them on their passengers behalf. I was actually instrumental in getting one corporate client to ban them from being used by their travelers after too many disasters. They are hideous in my opinion, and I will personally never fly them. I've seen too many people get totally screwed. Their CEO is actually on record for mocking people that have complained about their service. If there was ever a "Greyhound of the Skies," it's Spirit.

As far as Ryanair, I will defer to you as I have never flown them.

I think it's too early to tell about the American/US Airways merger, but the Justice Dept. is playing hardball like we haven't seen in years with this one. I personally don't want to see it happen.

[Dr Nevergold]

In the case of RyanAir and EasyJet, RyanAir is total crap service. EasyJet is slightly better, but I wouldn't classify them as significantly better.

I'll get off RyanAir after this post, but there's one thing that is burnt into my memory for life. When I was boarding at London-Stansted for Berlin, I had a reserved seat and was asked "why I sat there" after my boarding pass had been checked 2x already. They are paranoid about customers not sitting in certain places, even if you've been checked. RyanAir has a mixed setup, they have several rows in the front for reserved tickets, then the rest is a Southwest-like free for all. There's not much difference, the reserved seats are just as small and identical to the others, there's no difference in class of seat.

Then someone changed seats to a window seat since the seats were unsold (the entire row was free) just after takeoff and a flight attendant just totally freaked out screaming "SIR, SIR, SIR, SIR, SIR" about literally 20 times and bitched him out for the move. Any "normal" airliner wouldn't care less if someone took a window seat when its free. You could almost sense this lady hated her job, and was taking out her frustration on the passenger.

Lets just say its... awkward. I'll never fly RyanAir again, although EasyJet I'll have no problem with.

But with these super discounters there's one thing you'll never get around. If you miss your flight, you're on your own. You have to buy a new ticket, there's no rebooking. If there's storms, due to their lesser network, you have to sit and wait the entire day (or overnight) until that plane goes out. There's no booking on other flights to compensate for the loss most of the time.

Cheap is, well very cheap. At a certain point low cost isn't worth it. Although, there is merit in stating if the ticket is only $50-80, its cheap enough that you can buy another flight out without a huge loss.

That's how they qualify their low prices, if you get into trouble, just buy another ticket. LOL

The problem with RyanAir vs EasyJet is that RyanAir is notorious for some scams... For example, they have too few staff at the airport to take baggage and provide tickets, so lineups are *always* long (I waited over 40 minutes in line for baggage and ticketing at Stansted before getting through security).

If you miss your flight because you didn't arrive at the airport super early to stand through their rediculous lines, they don't compensate you. You have to buy another ticket, no refunds or transfers given. This is one of their more questionable practices. Even if its only $50-80 for the ticket, its still a scam. And its common place, there were people begging to cut through the 40 minute line in front of me, and one guy audibly got upset in front of the rest of us when they were told they wouldn't make it to the gate and the customer service agent asked him to buy a new ticket for a later flight, when he started screaming (he had arrived at the airport probably an hour early, waiting through that crazy lineup).

Oh RyanAir, you really are tragic!

[MIRYDI]

Saw this in the NBJ today, thought I would post it up for you guy's...

New International Paper tower on tap in Memphis

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville...er-on-tap.html

Memphis-based International Paper Co. could receive between $1.6 million and $2 million through Tennessee’s FastTrack Economic Development Fund for the $115.7 million expansion of its existing headquarters at 6350 Poplar and construction of its new office tower in Memphis.

The company’s application for the grant is on the agenda of this week’s board meeting of the Economic Growth Engine of Memphis & Shelby County.

International Paper received a 15-year PILOT for the project in February.

The grant is administered from the state, and the value is based on the number of new jobs the recipient is receiving. The company is planning to add 101 jobs in Memphis when the expansion is completed.

Very nice tower by the way!

[arkitekte]

^Construction should be getting started on that pretty soon, if it hasn't already. I wish it wasn't out east, but anything is better than nothing. When its completed, IP will have a pretty nice midrise campus.

[arkitekte]

Originally Posted by Brandon716

Even Spirit Airlines is expensive relative to RyanAir... Its like the hassle of the nickle and diming experience of RyanAir with only marginal savings. Considering how awful Spirit's customer service is in case problems occur (and their lack of large network to fly you around problems), I think its worth spending $50-$100 more and just going for a traditional airliner.

Spirit Airlines is straight garbage. I'm shocked that they don't charge to use the lavatories on their jets. In some situations, you can come out cheaper by buying one of their tickets, but if you haven't read through all of their "fine print" your $150 round trip ticket will turn into $300 really quick.

I read two articles this morning on how both Spirit and Allegiant were expanding their service by 5 or so cities each. In regards to MEM and the soon coming expansion that the airport authority mentioned a few weeks ago, it would have to be Frontier, unless American/US Airways was planning on adding a few more flights from MEM after their merger. Since this announcement was supposed to have already come it might have been American/Us Airways since we haven't heard anything about it. Frontier however would only serve cities out west, and I don't know what the demand is for that from MEM.

[VSRJ]

Originally Posted by arkitekte

^Construction should be getting started on that pretty soon, if it hasn't already. I wish it wasn't out east, but anything is better than nothing. When its completed, IP will have a pretty nice midrise campus.

I'm in the area regularly and the site has been pretty quiet. A sign is up with a rendering of the building. That's progress!

I'm even more interested to see what becomes of the old Cozymel's site. That's prime real estate, especially once they add the traffic light at that intersection (Poplar & International Place, I believe).

[arkitekte]

Originally Posted by VSRJ

I'm in the area regularly and the site has been pretty quiet. A sign is up with a rendering of the building. That's progress!

I'm even more interested to see what becomes of the old Cozymel's site. That's prime real estate, especially once they add the traffic light at that intersection (Poplar & International Place, I believe).

I gotcha. I'm rarely out that far, maybe once a month of so, so I don't get to check out the site as much. I was actually out that way last week and didn't remember to look to see what was going on.

There might have been MBJ or Daily News article posted about the Cozymel's site a few weeks back. Either way, it will be pretty interesting to see what happens there. I'll have to look to see if that part of Poplar zoned for only commercial, or if it's zoned for residential as well.

[Johnny Ryall]

Originally Posted by VSRJ

I'm even more interested to see what becomes of the old Cozymel's site. That's prime real estate, especially once they add the traffic light at that intersection (Poplar & International Place, I believe).

Here's a link to the post about the future of the Cozymel's site. It will be a 3-story building with retail on the ground floor & office space above.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=1582

[Johnny Ryall]

New entrance will bridge Overton Park to bike paths
Memphis Biz Journals

http://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/n...rton-park.html

Overton Park Conservancy

[Johnny Ryall]

Ole Miss approved for $132M in new projects
Memphis Biz Journals

http://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/b...2m-in-new.html

[arkitekte]

Originally Posted by Johnny Ryall

Here's a link to the post about the future of the Cozymel's site. It will be a 3-story building with retail on the ground floor & office space above.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=1582

Thanks for finding and re-posting this.

[Sooper_rebel]

Originally Posted by Johnny Ryall

Ole Miss approved for $132M in new projects
Memphis Biz Journals

Hotty Toddy!

[Sooper_rebel]

Originally Posted by atlantaguy

Southwest is slowly destroying AirTran's former hub and raising prices across the board. They are also cutting cities that we used to have service to, and dramatically reducing frequency to those that remain. This has turned out to not really be a merger at all, but more the elimination of a competitor and a way to gain a couple of gates in Atlanta.

Substitute "Delta" for "Southwest" and "Northwest" for "AirTran" then make it the only significant airline in the city and you will have an idea how people from Memphis feel about Delta.

[arkitekte]

Originally Posted by Sooper_rebel

Hotty Toddy!

Originally Posted by Sooper_rebel

Substitute "Delta" for "Southwest" and "Northwest for" "AirTran" then make it the only significant airline in the city and you will have an idea how people from Memphis feel about Delta.

That's pretty spot on.

[arkitekte]

New Memphis trolley schedule announced
http://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/b...announced.html

“The trolley has become an important part of the Downtown Memphis experience, not just for tourism, but as a business asset for downtown commuters as well, and we have adjusted the trolley hours to reflect that demand,” president of MATA William Hudson said in a news release. “This new schedule best matches the usage patterns of our riders.”

The bolded text should in reality probably read "This new schedule best matches the usage patterns of our budget."