MIA Expansion...?
 

Any thoughts if MIA could be become a future domicile for us since this LATAM deal? Especially seeing how it’s already a FA base. Just hopeful thinking since that would make my life MUCH easier.

You and me both. I think the new flights, albeit RJs, outta MIA is a good start this summer.

I’ve heard a number of 220 bubbas wish casting a Florida base for the 220-300s. It’s an entertaining argument, right up to the base of choice being Orlando, due to available airport space (and a shorter drive for the currently commuting pilot), but none of them have explained how that makes it a connecting base for LATAM and Miami.

The majority of those 220 bubba's won't be able to hold a Florida base so careful what they wish for.

By the time a base would be announced they’ll be senior enough. :D

If MIA opens as a base, the company is screwed at staffing NYC. Half the captains up there commute from Florida.

Well they won't be able to hold MIA! So I think the company will be just fine.

Lots of very senior guys commuting FL to NYC. The company would be fine, but plenty of them would be willing and able to bid down there.

Depends on what aircraft would be based in MIA. My bet is very few widebody captains are gonna downbid to narrowbody A.

Denny

Right, I'm not even talking WB Captains. I know a 4,xxx seniority NB Capt that would bid it in a heartbeat. I'm sure there are many more like him.

I'm not sure how pressing of a problem that would be, there would still be pilots chasing that upgrade. Bottom of the NYC list would be just as junior, but the top might just be a little more junior to match.

I'd fly a kite if they base it in MCO. Pretty tired of commuting.

Youd have to go get your “lighter than air” rating though, unless you already have it.

kite would be a glider rating, no? Haha

Does being full of hot air count?

The expansion I saw on delta net Bout miami is flow by E175....

I think people are hoping that as we get more A220s and as the LATAM deal starts to ramp up they will eventually do some more expansion and upguaging.

Thst theirs even the slack in the number if 76 seaters to do this shows the A220 has been replacing them.

Growth in some markets has been robust enough that getting marketing to commit to a given demand level so that crew resources can open or staff a category has been difficult. It has been rumored that BOS international growth has been so fast that the company won’t commit to an ER category (in top of the 320) because the market might upgauge to 330 levels too quickly to justify the intermediate ER category. So, how does MIA compare? It is possible that we’ll see a period of big growth before the forecast stabilized enough to match up with an argument for a base with 1(or more) categories.

An RDU domicile makes the most sense... half way between FL and NYC. The law of averages, or something like that.

atlanta is too close to rdu.

American has an RDU 767 base with like 6 crews or something in it.

Not anymore. The flight was up-gauged to a 777 and it’s done by DFW crews, but we do have a lot of domiciles located very close to each other: DCA, PHL, LGA, BOS.

Too bad for those guys, I ran into one of the pilots once and he was rather enjoying his little RDU base. I didn't realize AA had a BOS base still, is it pretty senior?

Relatively senior but new hires can hold it right out of training or shortly after.

And it’s only a 737 base for AA....I believe around 100 crews.

At least In 2014, they also had very small bases in SFO and TUL.

And CVG isn't to DTW? I've met guys who drive further than that.

Yeah the proximity arguement is silly. It has nothng to do with that and everything to do with capacity in a given airframe at each city in question, long term projections for the same and smaller factors like hotel costs etc. AA and JB destroy the "they're too close" narrative.

AA is also much more willing to have small boutique bases than we are so that could be a factor. I wonder if they have some contractual leeway that makes it cheaper to open and close a base or category.

They should close Miami and we should take their gates for our new base ;):D My wishful thinking is out of control.