AUS 320? “might happen sooner than you know it..”
Nice to see management “soft” confirming the intention of making AUS a hub. Between the 30,000 sq. ft. Skyclub set to be built there (2nd largest in system), at least 15 gates set to be Delta’s when the new concourse comes online in 2030, and AUS managements purposeful airport buildout of a “hub-friendly/ATL-like” design are all positive indicators..
From TPG on DL Senior VP of Network Planning: Paul Baldoni
[Austin as the next hub?
Pre-coronavirus pandemic, Delta had five focus cities: Austin; Cincinnati; Nashville; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; and San Jose, California.
As the carrier emerged from the pandemic, it doubled down on Austin and Raleigh-Durham while unofficially dropping the remaining airports from its focus city strategy.
While Delta continues to expand in Raleigh-Durham, the airline is making some really big investments in Austin.
"We've had great success in Austin. We like the demographic trends we see in Austin. So, that will continue to be the primary focus," Baldoni explained.
As Delta keeps growing in Austin, the transition from a focus city to a hub might happen sooner than you know it.
"We're getting up to now close to 80 departures a day [along with our partners]. When we get to close to around 120 daily departures, you start building some of that connectivity that exists in what you would call a hub, whether we call Austin a hub or not," according to Baldoni.
While "we're not really there yet," Baldoni said that "we want to continue to build Austin primarily for the local customer, but a natural consequence of that will be the connecting traffic."
Consider this one developing.]
https://thepointsguy.com/news/delta-...AEoAs_fxXUzHoA