Comments on: Delta Invades Raleigh/Durham and Pittsburgh with Flights to Paris

By: Dheena Dayal Raju

Dheena Dayal Raju — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:03:08 +0000

Hello,

This is a welcome move by Delta.
Now any traveller from Pittsburgh has to fly/drive minimum of 400 miles to board any international flight to fly to Europe/Middle east/Asia.

This direct flight eliminates that travel time which is beneficial for the whole region (particularly the small town near and around pittsburgh)

DDR

By: David

David — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 04:00:18 +0000

RDU to CDG is an interesting flight option. Maybe they are partnering with AF as a feeder or a very valuable corporate client has asked DL to create this flight similar to AA from RDU to LHR (formerly LGW). The PIT to CDG may be interesting for WN customers. I don’t know of too many companies that are based at PIT with french operations but they may have passengers from WN or US that might make it worthwhile. Perhaps DL wants to steal US traffic out of PHL. The more sustainable options for customers, the better!

By: CF

CF — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 03:22:57 +0000

Ken PIT – While PIT may be the largest market without flights to Europe, someone will always have to have that title. It doesn’t mean they should have service. I’d like to think this would work, but US Airways didn’t downsize PIT because they didn’t like the city. They downsized because the demand wasn’t there to support all the flights they had. And they had European flights, so clearly someone decided it couldn’t work. What this new opportunity has, of course, is feed in Paris so it can probably do better than US Airways. We’ll see how it goes.

By: Matty D.

Matty D. — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:35:13 +0000

I dont fly the 757 / 76 but from a pilot perspective, I also am showing PIT-CDG at about 3435 NM (about 3950 statute miles), and the RDU-CDG run at 3550 NM (about 4085 miles). Whenever you cross the pond the distance might vary depending which track is being used according to the upper level winds. Sometimes (especially in the winter) these flights get wicked tailwinds = faster groundspeed = sooner to see the Eiffel Tower! Crossing the other way and you could see strong headwinds = slower groundspeed = stopping to pick up fuel once over land.

I don’t know much about DL’s 757 equipment and engine specs, but I’m actually showing the 752 on average has a range of 3900 NM (roughly 4490 miles). Add another 200 NM (about 230 miles) if winglets are installed. This should be well within the envelop for ETOW ops for most days. On some days with strong winds, and a full house onboard, fuel stops probably wouldn’t be uncommon. If the route does well, they could upgrade the equipment. To start off though, it’ll get the job done.

As for passenger comfort…well…that’s another story! (But hey, it’s the marginal cost of a direct flight verses a connecting flight out of PHL or NY or wherever.)

By: Ken PIT

Ken PIT — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 13:56:43 +0000

I appreciate all the interest generated by the PIT-CDG route, but it’s clear that most of the comments are from folks who are unfamiliar with the PIT market. It is the largest market in the U.S. (outside of San Diego) without non-stop service to Europe. Because of the strength of the business market, it has disproportionately high revenue. And it is no longer US territory. US is down to about 33% of ops at PIT, still the single biggest carrier but not dominant by any stretch.

John from RDU explained exactly why the PIT flight will be successful with business flyers. Trying to get to an East Coast gateway, especially with the ATC ground holds that PIT suffers from, is always a crapshoot. And if you miss the connection on this side of the pond, you lose 24 hours. Our business travelers are leaving a half day early so they can be sure they’re on the ground in EWR or PHL or JFK in time. Getting on a plane and getting to Europe (even a single aisle) will make things much easier for our business passnegers.

By: JG

JG — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 17:23:44 +0000

Thanks for the info!

Although I wish it were not the case, I feel that the base of businesses that will use the international flight is shrinking, not growing. Also, these businesses are letting fewer employees travel. After two years and the incentives run out, what happens then?

I am curious if there are other examples of a group of businesses getting together and essentially subsidizing air travel so that that could have a particular route? Did Toyota did this for the UA west-coast routes to Nagoya? Does Disney do this for the LAX-MCO flights? OK, so those are individual companies, but what about a confederation of regional businesses?

By: The Big K

The Big K — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 13:11:38 +0000

JG:

How about this (from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette):

The local business community, which has been adamant in seeking the service, is so confident it can make Delta’s decision worthwhile that it, along with the state, is providing a financial backstop. If the Paris flights don’t meet revenue targets after one year, the Allegheny Conference and the state will split a $5 million payment to the airline. If enough revenue isn’t generated in the second year, they’ll pay another $4 million.

By: JG

JG — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:26:45 +0000

Jonathan:
I don’t think PIT is going to enjoy a newfound re-emergence as anything. It is quite sad that it is largely idle, but with fewer US airlines and fewer US flights, airports are seeing drops in the number of daily flight, not increases.

PIT has been bargaining for a true international flight for some time. The county thinks that this will stimulate international corporations to move to the area. They supposedly waived landing fees for the PIT-CDG DL flights, but I wonder what other incentives they gave DL? ($0.50 off per 10,000 gal. of Jet A for every cup of coffee they sell in the terminal perhaps?)

By: Kevin

Kevin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 15:27:08 +0000

Continental now serves EWR-TXL with a Boeing 767-200ER.

By: CF

CF — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 12:02:00 +0000

Shane – I’d say there’s no question that if they had all their 757s happily deployed on the most profitable opportunities, they wouldn’t be looking to do this. So they’re probably seeing that there is a way for them try and increase profitability by moving the 757s over here. If it works, great. If not, oh well. It’s worth a shot.