Friday, September 12, 2003
Why Long Beach Is the New Los
Angeles
By Eric Gillin
The Street
Looking for a cheap flight in
or out of Los Angeles?
Try Ontario, Calif., or any number of smaller,
secondary airports in the Los Angeles area that offer lower fares, cheaper
parking and far less hassle than Los Angeles International Airport. And the
trend isn't exclusive to the West Coast -- across the country smaller airports
offer similar advantages.
Low-cost and regional carriers that use
alternative airports are causing a headache for the big airlines that dominate
the major airports. But for consumers, the success of the small carriers and
their hubs means one thing: cheaper fares. And the trend is likely to gather
steam in the next few years, as small carriers roll out expansion
plans.
"The pricing that JetBlue offers [from Oakland] is just fantastic.
If you've flown from San Francisco, you know how monolithic that airport is,
walking for miles just to get to your gate," said Phil Carpenter, vice president
of marketing for SideStep, an online travel search engine. "In Oakland, you
literally park your car and walk to the terminal. It's ironic. I live less than
10 minutes south of San Francisco, but I'll gladly drive to Oakland in order to
get a more pleasant flying experience and lower fares."
The low-cost
carriers' ability to put downward pressure on fare prices and spur demand by
using secondary airports, dubbed the "Southwest Effect," is a strong selling
point. According to data from the Department of Transportation, in the third
quarter of 2002, the average one-way fare from San Francisco was $212, which was
$100 more than the average one-way fare from Oakland.
Indeed, low-cost
competition along with other factors has depressed traffic at San Francisco
International Airport, where UAL unit United Airlines maintains a hub. Last
year, San Francisco's passenger load fell by 9%, while Oakland International
Airport, where JetBlue maintains a west-coast hub, grew by 11.5%. This year, San
Francisco expects air travel to come in near 30 million, a level unseen since
1992.
Alternative airports offer other advantages besides cheap fares. In
the current climate, where security is a top priority and lines can be lengthy,
these airports can be more efficient at processing people because crowds can be
smaller. Furthermore, some alternatives to major airports can cut down on
hassles getting to the airport, as is the case with Providence's T.F. Green
Airport, just 60 miles south of Boston, where a massive reconstruction project
has disrupted the already confusing traffic patterns around Logan
Airport.
Also, the daily rate to park a car can be much cheaper at an
alternative airport. Consider the difference between Los Angeles International
Airport and the secondary airports that lie in its shadow. L.A. International
charges $30 a day for parking, while Ontario International -- 55 miles away and
home to JetBlue -- charges $12 a day. Others are similarly cheap, with Burbank's
airport charging $15.45 and Santa Ana's charging $17.
"These are no
longer air strips. These are airports, with the added benefit of easier, cheaper
parking. They have all of the upside and none of the problems associated with
larger airports," said Carpenter.
Expansion Plans
In the next few
years, consumers can expect to see more good deals at smaller airports, as
low-cost and regional carriers execute expansion plans. JetBlue, which operates
out of Long Beach and Ontario, Calif., instead of Los Angeles, plans to add
seven more Airbus A320s by the end of 2003 and has ordered an additional 100
regional jets, which will start entering service in mid-2005.
Other
carriers have similar plans. Morgan Stanley recently said Southwest Airlines,
which operates from Islip, N.Y., instead of New York City, could add 400 planes
-- doubling its fleet -- over the next decade. Mesa Airlines, which flies for
United Airlines in the southwestern part of the U.S., increased its regional jet
fleet size by 21 planes in the third quarter and signed agreements to add up to
55 more by the end of 2004.
Ultimately, all this growth has to go
somewhere -- and experts say it will be smaller airports, since larger hubs are
already nearing maximum capacity.
"When all of those new planes start
landing, they have to figure out where they'll go," said Tom Parsons, chief
executive of BestFares.com. "And no way New York or Atlanta is going to handle
that many more planes; therefore they'll be out there looking for a new hub to
spread those cheap airfares further."
To combat the crush of small
carriers, the older network names have launched or have plans to start their own
low-cost units. Earlier in the year, Delta Air Lines began offering service on
Song, it's low-cost unit, from New York, with plans to ramp up the number of
flights through the end of 2003. United Airlines plans to use a similar tactic
to help take advantage of cost cuts gained in bankruptcy. But none of them can
match the expansion planned by rival regional carriers.
Small Airports
Aren't Perfect
Of course, alternative airports aren't always the
cheapest. Sometimes, a larger airport can be cheaper, especially between two
major hubs dominated by a network carrier. Department of Transportation stats
show San Francisco's average one-way fare to Las Vegas was $72, vs. $90 for
Oakland. Flights between Boston and Atlanta, where both Delta Air Lines and
AirTran maintain a huge presence, are much cheaper ($143) than flights from
Providence ($188) and Hartford ($211).
Indeed, alternative airports
aren't always the ideal solution. Many travelers have no smaller airport
options, or alternatives that are so small, underserved or far away that they're
not viable. And at a bigger secondary airport like Oakland, the nation's 34th
largest and growing, travelers will still encounter crowding and
lines.
Since alternative airports tend to be small, there are fewer of
the services, amenities and restaurants available at their larger cousins. Also,
if something were to go wrong, like a delayed or missed flight, travelers would
also have fewer options to get out of town -- some airports are served by as few
as three carriers flying limited schedules.
"There's another drawback to
mention, too. To the extent that low-cost airlines are growing, they may offer
convenient flights if you're going to a major destination," said Con Hitchcock,
former executive director of the Aviation Consumer Action Project. "But if you
want to go to Fayetteville, Ark., it's tough to get there on anyone but a major
carrier. Low-cost carriers have smaller routes and don't have the elaborate
route network the majors do."
Get a Second Opinion
While
searching for airfares is easy, so is overlooking a number of smaller
airports that could have cheaper fares.
Primary Option
Code
Secondary Options
Code
Distance From Primary Airport
Boston, Mass.
BOS
Providence, R.I.
PVD
61 miles
Manchester, N.H.
MHT
54
Hartford, Conn.
BDL
112
Cincinnati, Ohio
CVG
Lexington, Kent.
LEX
93
Dayton, Ohio
DAY
68
Los Angeles, Calif.
LAX
Burbank, Calif.
BUR
28
Long Beach, Calif.
LGB
21
Santa Ana, Calif.
SNA
41
Ontario, Calif.
ONT
55
Miami, Fla.
MIA
W. Palm Beach, Fla.
PBI
71
Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
FLL
34
New York, N.Y.
NYC
Islip/Long Island, N.Y.
ISP
52
Philadelphia, Penn.
PHL
105
Raleigh/Durham, N.C.
RDU
Greensboro, N.C.
GSO
78
Richmond, Va.
RIC
Newport News, Va.
PHF
62
Norfolk, Va.
ORF
86
San Francisco, Calif.
SFO
Oakland, Calif.
OAK
32
Source: TSC
Research, Mapquest
| A Tale of Three Cities Here's a look at how smaller, secondary airports around Boston, San Francisco and Miami are often much cheaper to fly from than larger, primary airports serving the same area. All fares are one-way. | ||||||
| The Boston Area | Cleveland | Chicago | Baltimore | Seattle | L.A. | Avg. Fare* |
| Boston | $243 | $178 | $96 | $238 | $275 | $184 |
| Providence | $187 | $142 | $73 | $188 | $188 | $133 |
| Hartford | $190 | $150 | $72 | $190 | $188 | $153 |
| The Bay Area | L.A. | Houston | Chicago | D.C. | N.Y. | Avg. Fare* |
| San Francisco | $109 | $331 | $194 | $404 | $257 | $212 |
| Oakland | $75 | $212 | $153 | $176 | $183 | $112 |
| Miami Beach | D.C. | Philly | N.Y. | Las Vegas | L.A. | Avg. Fare* |
| Miami | $197 | $164 | $145 | $161 | $305 | $168 |
| W. Palm Beach | $130 | $128 | $125 | -- | -- | $127 |
| Ft. Lauderdale | $116 | $120 | $116 | $142 | $182 | $123 |
| * -- Average of all one-way fares from airport, as of third-quarter 2002. Source: Department of Transportation report, July 2003. | ||||||