Dobbo why do you assert AA/BA will undoubtedly be back? If AA have left the JFK route and I believe they have then this seems to be the end of any credibility to the rumour of BA operating long haul here. This development also ends the possibility of US legacy airlines expanding as their interest is feeding hubs rather than p2p. Routes which were viable a few years back no longer are e.g. Washington, Charlotte plus the rumoured Detroit(DL), Chicago (UA( and Dallas (AA). Future growth will come from lower frequency direct routes (perhaps into these hubs but as a destination rather than a distribution point) provided MT and to a much lesser extent VS maintain their current strategy and focus. History shows these sort of carriers get absorbed into BA eventually.