Delta reducing flights to JAX again

[movedsouth]

What's going on with Delta and Jacksonville. For a while, it looked like they tried to make Jacksonville a focus city with direct flights to LAX, MIA and DCA. All of these destinations are now gone. i just found out that the DCA flight got lost with the recent swap Delta did with US Air.

United now got more flights then Delta out of Jacksonville. I really should switch I guess.

[KenFSU]

Supply and demand, I'd suppose.

[fsujax]

I took the direct flight to LA once, it was great.

[Lunican]

Does Southwest have the most flights out of JAX now?

[tufsu1]

SWA has for quite some time...and with the acquisition of AirTran, their market share is even larger

[fieldafm]

I took the direct flight to LA once, it was great.

I used to take it once every five weeks.  It was hardly ever occupied more than 60%.  Usually, 65% is kind of the break-even point for airlines.

I really like the JetBlue direct service to NYC and Puerto Rico, although I can't see where the Puerto Rico leg is very profitable... prices on those flights are always dirt cheap. 

[KenFSU]

I really like the JetBlue direct service to NYC.

+1

Big fan of JetBlue.

[Ocklawaha]

Forgive me if I didn't notice that flight to DC is now missing, you see, twice every evening, you can fly to DC at 13 feet.

http://www.youtube.com/v/jtplEd4gkM0?version=3&hl=en_US

[Gators312]

Here's a link to the most recent statistics.

http://www.flyjax.com/PDFs/february2011-transportation.pdf

[Ralph W]

On the Silver Star clip, #146, did you notice the fool running across the tracks just before the train got to the crossing?

[movedsouth]

Forgive me if I didn't notice that flight to DC is now missing, you see, twice every evening, you can fly to DC at 13 feet.

You realize Amtrak is "flying" from Jacksonville to DC at 40 miles an hour... I don't consider that competitive.

[Ocklawaha]

Forgive me if I didn't notice that flight to DC is now missing, you see, twice every evening, you can fly to DC at 13 feet.

You realize Amtrak is "flying" from Jacksonville to DC at 40 miles an hour... I don't consider that competitive.

Sarcasm? HA! Try the track speed for the passenger trains, 79 mph, which raises to the 100-110 mark once it clears Washington.

Bottom Line with rail v air on the east coast corridor, certainly it's a choice but to me it goes something like this:

Embraer 195 Interior, first class.

AIRLINE PASSENGER:

Slept well in anticipation of the morning flight to DC
Get to the airport and stand in line to check baggage
Check 3 bags at a cost of $25.00 each
Verify that your computer generated 'ticket' and 'seat selection' are okay.
Hurried to the airport choking down a BK sausage biscuit and a bad cup of Joe at the airport, paying twice for it
Brave the Homeland Security hassle, barefoot, full body scan, have your toothpaste taken away because it's an ounce too big.
Run to the gate because the fool at Homeland Security wanted to play with your shoes.
Join the 132 person mob at the gate and hear the morning flight is overbooked, only 124 will fit in the Embraer 195..
Missing some of the announcements you manage to be the last passenger boarded even though your 'first class'
You find the first class seat is, unlike coach, big enough to settle into.
At the start of the flight you find yourself pasted to the window looking at the receding dots and lines far below.
Have a nice flight thinking about your business in DC, while watching the same movie for the 5Th time.
Aircraft delay getting to the gate after landing at DCA..
Finally get to the gate, get off and try and find a lunch.
Eat at the airport cafe and pay 4 times for it.
Get to the car rental by early afternoon and drive like hell to Alexandria, your actual destination.
Finish by spending a couple of hours recovering from jet lag.

RAIL:

Go to the Amtrak station the 'night before'
Check your bags, FREE, oh and the line only had 5 people in it.
Train pulls in at 5:08 pm
Show your computer generated ticket and simply walk out and board.
The train wasn't overbooked, but it still had 350 people on it.
You car attendant leads you to your room, in 5 minutes your 'flying' at 90 on CSX fast track north of town.
Until dark, you are pasted to your window enjoying receding countryside of south Georgia.
In your room you find:
Space for two adults (maximum of three, with two children or smaller persons sharing the lower berth)
Private enclosed restroom in cabin with sink, vanity, toilet
Private, self-enclosed shower in the cabin
Upper and lower berths
Sofa (converts to lower berth)
Upper berth folds down from wall
Separate armchair
Can be combined in to a Suite
Electrical outlets
Climate control
Individual reading lights
Garment rack
Fold-down table
Fresh towels and bed linens
Soap and, shower amenities
Personal service (turn-down, coffee, paper, make-up bed)
Bottled water
Daily newspaper
After a great cooked to order meal you retire to the lounge car where you quickly make friends, conversation and a nightcap.
You sleep soundly, feeling the gentle rocking motion of the train.
You are gently early and enjoy an excellent full breakfast.
step off the train at 6:55 am in Alexandria, fresh, rested, and walk to your destination.

Yeah, maybe these are the extremes for the airline, but it isn't rare, on the other hand this is the way rail rolls. Meet me in the lounge car sometime and we'll talk about it.

AMTRAK PHOTO

Granted the airplane is faster, but it's also a hassle and you'll NEVER find this lounge on a plane. If you want to check out
'coach' you'll find the seats as big as first class in an aircraft, they recline and there's enough leg room for a basketball star.

[Dog Walker]

Anybody who takes on Ock in a transportation fight is going to LOSE!

We are going to take Amtrack to NYC in May for a nephew's wedding.  Would never have known that it was less expensive overall and a LOT less stressful without all of the transportation threads on this forum and Ocks informed advocacy.

[movedsouth]

I may give it a try ;-) But once you get the cabin, it is more expensive then a typical plane ticket. The only advantage is that you don't spent the night in DC (but instead on the train). and yup... its 40 mph on average (14 hrs to DC).

When I lived up in Boston, I regularly took the train to NYC and DC. North of DC, Amtrak is very competitive.

[Steve]

What's going on with Delta and Jacksonville. For a while, it looked like they tried to make Jacksonville a focus city with direct flights to LAX, MIA and DCA. All of these destinations are now gone. i just found out that the DCA flight got lost with the recent swap Delta did with US Air.

United now got more flights then Delta out of Jacksonville. I really should switch I guess.

So, in regard to the original question - low demand killed the LAX flight. I'm a Delta frequent flyer, and it was consistently on the weekly fare specials email, which is send every Tuesday for the upcoming weekend's flights. If you see a flight consistently in that, consider it on it's death bed. The planes weren't completely empty, however in order to fill the seats, they had to see at very low prices, thus making it unsustainable.

MIA was the same way, and was really added with Delta's plan to make MIA an international gateway (they added a MIA-LHR flight I believe), which they've seemed to back off of the expansion plans for MIA now.

DCA had nothing to do with JAX, but with the DCA-LGA swap that Delta did with US Airways. Delta has almost completely pulled out of DCA, while US Airways has all but pulled out of of LGA.

While the number of flights might have gone down, the birds are either the same size, or expanded in some cases (the JAX-LGA is now a mainline plane for example).

Now, with regard to the rail thing - I would love to, but work doesn't really allow for that. For example, as a Medallion, I can be to the gate within 15 minute of parking, and to my typical destination in two hours, so in about 3-4 hours, be where I need to be.