AUSTIN | ABIA Updates

[aschwab]

Originally Posted by khowaga

I dunno if I’d say heathrow is successful with its two runway model, since they’ve been trying to get permission to build a third for years, but ... if I remember correctly, it was said that we wouldn’t really need the third runway until we were in the 30 million pax range. We’ll need terminal space well before we’ll need the new runway.

They manage with the two. It isn't perfect, more would be better, but you can have one of the largest airports on earth managing with just 2, Austin will be fine for the foreseeable future.

[DoubleC]

KSAN has over 20 million and has just 1 runway! I really think we’re fine with 2 for now.

[austlar1]

Originally Posted by DoubleC

KSAN has over 20 million and has just 1 runway! I really think we’re fine with 2 for now.

KSAN is the scariest airport in the US because of that one runway and that amazing downward glide needed to land on that one runway.

[mumu]

Originally Posted by AvgeekDL

Just was thinking, why is the third runway being pushed back to beyond 2040? Are aircraft movements not going to grow enough to warrant it until then? Most of AUS's peer airports have three runways, why not build it sooner? Runways seem to be the most complicated thing to build at an airport, AUS should tackle it right away.

Lack of terminal capacity is more often the bottleneck with cramped airports - Heathrow an obvious exception. Runways can be built fast (in less than a year) as long as there is actual space for them; some airports (KCI, STL, CVG, BVA, etc) have far too many runways due to money greasing the wrong hands. Terminals take many years of design, prep, and construction. We are way behind right now.

Beijing Capital has 3 runways and almost as many flights as Atlanta, with 5 runways. These are the top two airports in the world by passenger traffic. (Beijing is building an entire new extra airport with 6+ runways at the other end of its metro area.)

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by austlar1

KSAN is the scariest airport in the US because of that one runway and that amazing downward glide needed to land on that one runway.

What, you don't like coming out of the clouds and having a flagpole next to your window?

Originally Posted by mumu

Lack of terminal capacity is more often the bottleneck with cramped airports - Heathrow an obvious exception. Runways can be built fast (in less than a year) as long as there is actual space for them; some airports (KCI, STL, CVG, BVA, etc) have far too many runways due to money greasing the wrong hands. Terminals take many years of design, prep, and construction. We are way behind right now.

Heathrow is also slot restricted and has a nighttime curfew with severe restrictions from 2330-0600 (this is why they want the third runway).

OTOH, Kansas City, Saint Louis and Cincinnati have the number of runways they do because they were all hub operations (for TWA and Delta) that were discontinued for various reasons. They're not needed now, but that was not always the case.

[masonh2479]

ViaAir is adding Austin to Memphis. Anyone want to place bets on how long or even if the service will start?
http://www.flymemphis.com/NewsDetails?newsid=5267

[aschwab]

Originally Posted by masonh2479

ViaAir is adding Austin to Memphis. Anyone want to place bets on how long or even if the service will start?
http://www.flymemphis.com/NewsDetails?newsid=5267

Doesn't Frontier or Allegiant offer this? Yeah, it won't work for Via.

[masonh2479]

Originally Posted by aschwab

Doesn't Frontier or Allegiant offer this? Yeah, it won't work for Via.

Allegiant flies it. I wish we would hear news from them rather than Via.

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by masonh2479

Allegiant flies it. I wish we would hear news from them rather than Via.

It makes more sense than, say, Baton Rouge?

[Mikey711MN]

Originally Posted by khowaga

The other variable is that we also don’t know where Spirit will go yet.

Believe it or not, they'll operate out of the Barbara Jordan Terminal. That is confirmed.

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by Mikey711MN

Believe it or not, they'll operate out of the Barbara Jordan Terminal. That is confirmed.

I know—I meant which gate(s). Sorry, should have been clearer!

[DoubleC]

It’s a very scenic approach, the approach to SAN to runway 27, although overrated as “scary” or dangerous (it can be tragic if something crashes onto the highway and all those houses I suppose). Slightly steeper approach and no ILS glideslope (just PAPI I think for vertical guidance). Would like to fly down it eventually. Nothing like Kai Tak though if you’re familiar with it.

And what the heck is Via thinking? How do they still have enough money to keep running these routes? I guess beggars can’t be choosers and EAS helps them out. Most people would just connect if possible (which it is from most cities they serve anyways). I wish them luck and like their niche as a small-city airline as opposed to just all mainline/regional airline service, they need it.

I would only perhaps fly Via if they added a flight to Big Bend or Corpus, but their reliability has shown to be horrendous. I don’t think I’d like their fares and most people would prefer to just drive there from Austin.

I would guess East concourse from where Frontier is leaving, but certain carriers use those end gates (24 and 25, formerly). Going to take a while to remember those gate assignments, I had them all memorized per airline once ): . It’s just addding +9 think.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

We here are gaining direct service to Austin-Bergstrom from Birmingham-Shuttlesworth. In addition, we'll be gaining direct flights to Mobile, Pittsburgh, and Raleigh/Durham as a focus city for ViaAir.

I know all of Austin's future ViaAir flights are rather redundant, but I quite like the options that have opened up for us in Birmingham. I haven't been able to find an article or press release that says so, but hope that ViaAir plans allow passengers to use BHM as a connection. Southwest uses Birmingham as a connection (though infrequently).

I guess we'll see! Early-mid April shoud give us a good idea as to how ViaAir plans to operate.

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by tascalisa

We here are gaining direct service to Austin-Bergstrom from Birmingham-Shuttlesworth. In addition, we'll be gaining direct flights to Mobile, Pittsburgh, and Raleigh/Durham as a focus city for ViaAir.

I know all of Austin's future ViaAir flights are rather redundant, but I quite like the options that have opened up for us in Birmingham. I haven't been able to find an article or press release that says so, but hope that ViaAir plans allow passengers to use BHM as a connection. Southwest uses Birmingham as a connection (though infrequently).

I guess we'll see! Early-mid April shoud give us a good idea as to how ViaAir plans to operate.

I hope you all have better luck than we have. On average half of our daily flights didn't operate (now they've been cancelled outright). I don't know that we want to see Via Air go under, so much as we are kind of hoping they either get their act together or go away. They definitely don't have a stellar reputation here.

[eskimo33]

I have taken ViaAir a fair amount, as the in-laws live in Tulsa, OK and (the oneish hour direct flight sure beats the hell out of three hour alternative) sure the planes are old and dated, but honestly the seat width and pitch seems to be bigger than the newer jetsand they have the bad habit of not running the A/C on the flights and it gets warm...
However, it has been my experience with ViaAir, that they normally do not cancel the Friday-Sunday flights (Having said that, we now book backup refundable Southwest Flights in case they do cancel). One of the gate agents (in Tulsa), told my wife that they will cancel flights if they (Via) do not think in will be profitable. (He also said, that the AUS-TUL was the second most profitable route, this was maybe last November?).
I often wonder why they do not just reduce the flight frequency, instead of cancelling the flights. It would make things better for the traveler's and restore some faith in the airline.

[SpawnOfVulcan]

Originally Posted by khowaga

I hope you all have better luck than we have. On average half of our daily flights didn't operate (now they've been cancelled outright). I don't know that we want to see Via Air go under, so much as we are kind of hoping they either get their act together or go away. They definitely don't have a stellar reputation here.

It seems to be very much up in the air. I messed around on Via's website to see how someone from Raleigh or Mobile might find their way to Austin or Pittsburgh as those might actually be some convenient connections at the right price. Sadly, the website hasn't shown that one can begin in Austin and connect through Birmingham to Raleigh/Durham.

The above makes me wonder what the airline actually considers a "focus city" I mean, in theory, someone should be able to get from Raleigh/Durham to Austin-Bergstrum via Birmingham-Shuttlesworth, or Mobile to Austin-Bergstrum via Birmingham-Shuttlesworth.

I tried to book a flight from Raleigh/Durham to Austin-Bergstrum, but it was a no go. It confused me, because if Birmingham-Shuttlesworth is a focus city, one should be able to hop from Raleigh to Birmingham to Austin.

Dunno... hopefully, they'll flesh things out before April. I'm eager to have a direct flight from Birmingham to Austin. Can't wait till I can take a few days off and visit!

[AvgeekDL]

Final thought about ViaAir; I could care less about them. They have a poor and unreliable service and a business model that is doomed to fail. ABIA does not need to waste time with a carrier that can't get their act together, they need to pursue reputable carriers that will come in and stick around. Sadly, without a hub, most of these smaller cities just cannot be realistically connected to ABIA.

Anyway, moving on. I was thinking about this today. As ABIA grows, but knowing it will be decades, if ever, before the entire four concourse terminal complex (shown in the ultimate build out slide in the master plan presentation) will be built out, and given the increasing parking constraints on the north side, do you think there is a chance the airport could build a true south entrance off the 130/45 and a parking lot to provide more parking in the interim? I know there is already the one for the South Terminal, but that is scheduled to be bulldozed when the satellite is built. This would be essentially building the parking lot that they have in the long-range concept. The parking lot could have a shuttle to the terminal perhaps?

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by AvgeekDL

Final thought about ViaAir; I could care less about them. They have a poor and unreliable service and a business model that is doomed to fail. ABIA does not need to waste time with a carrier that can't get their act together, they need to pursue reputable carriers that will come in and stick around. Sadly, without a hub, most of these smaller cities just cannot be realistically connected to ABIA.

Anyway, moving on. I was thinking about this today. As ABIA grows, but knowing it will be decades, if ever, before the entire four concourse terminal complex (shown in the ultimate build out slide in the master plan presentation) will be built out, and given the increasing parking constraints on the north side, do you think there is a chance the airport could build a true south entrance off the 130/45 and a parking lot to provide more parking in the interim? I know there is already the one for the South Terminal, but that is scheduled to be bulldozed when the satellite is built. This would be essentially building the parking lot that they have in the long-range concept. The parking lot could have a shuttle to the terminal perhaps?

It seemed like they were leaning against this in the master planning because the access road wouldn’t be able to tunnel (same reason the satellite terminal has a bridge rather than a tunnel), so people going to the airport would have to select their entrance several miles away. Personally, I think a people mover, like the one at DFW, would be ideal so that you could come in at either end.

But who can tell what they’re planning four decades out? By then we might have planes that can vertically take off without needing a runway and the whole design will look radically different. You know, kind of like how my second grade science book told me I could be living in a space colony by the time I get to the age I am now?

[We vs us]

I flew into ABIA yesterday afternoon from a week away on business, and the place was packed. Almost legitimately hard to walk through in some sections. It was definitely a peak travel hour, but even non-peak times we're at what feels like almost uncomfortable occupancy. Just saying, I wish we'd started planning for the additional terminal a couple of years back -- we'll need it waaaaay before it's anywhere near complete.

Unrelated: according to some of the promotional signs on the wall, the food court is going to get Flyrite Chicken, Hat Creek Burgers, and an East Side Pies. No joke, Barbara Jordan may be the best collection of awesome local cuisine in the city, bar none.

[khowaga]

Originally Posted by We vs us

I flew into ABIA yesterday afternoon from a week away on business, and the place was packed. Almost legitimately hard to walk through in some sections. It was definitely a peak travel hour, but even non-peak times we're at what feels like almost uncomfortable occupancy. Just saying, I wish we'd started planning for the additional terminal a couple of years back -- we'll need it waaaaay before it's anywhere near complete.

Unrelated: according to some of the promotional signs on the wall, the food court is going to get Flyrite Chicken, Hat Creek Burgers, and an East Side Pies. No joke, Barbara Jordan may be the best collection of awesome local cuisine in the city, bar none.

That area down by checkpoint 3 (on the west side) is a real bottleneck. I'm hoping that once the construction is done and those walls come down it'll ease the congestion somewhat, but there just seems to be a lot of people who are standing around in that area for no particular reason.