Originally Posted by
Flika
I agree with that, I do think the legacies basic economy was a smart move that ended up being sucessful product that makes them a ton of money. Did the DOJs decision help them? absolutely. Is basic economy on united that much better than a ride on Spirit? Personally a seat in the back is a seat in the back to me, but the general flying public has voted with their dollar and would much rather fly on the legacies. And to your point, the scale of the legacies allows them to charge just about the same price as the ULCCs. At this point I think it might be too late for the ULCCs like Spirit. I think the Allegiant's, Avelo's and Breeze's of the aviation world who purposely stay of the legacies way are feasible way to stay afloat without being absolutely crushed by the legacies.
Basic economy does not make the legacies “a ton of money.” It retains leisure customers they would otherwise lose to the competition and simultaneously is putting said competition out of business. The legacies are not making money on the basic economy product. It’s a loss leader. They’re just able to offset the that loss with revenue from CC and premium products.