Originally Posted by
davebham
Is it really so bad that AA's load is only 68%? It's a new service that flies at the same time as the United service, and yet, even in October, is shifting over 6000 pax. I tried out the service back in May, and the only free seats I could see were in business class.
I guess it all depends on AA's expectations.
I do wonder about flight times - while 9am departures are good for getting to NYC at lunchtime, perhaps offering departures at different times of day could also prove tempting, and offer real variety compared to United's service.
What's really in play here is that UA and AA are members of different alliances, and business passengers may favour one alliance over another when things like corporate deals and frequent flyer programmes come into play. I'm guessing that the 09:00 departure from BHX for both carriers offers a sensible compromise for attracting both point to point and connecting passengers.
If the yields are good, then I imagine that AA will be OK with an LF of 68% - but of course we aren't privy to yield information.