mollusk Posted April 10, 2014 Share Posted April 10, 2014 I had no idea there was that much demand between Los Angeles and Brevard County. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted April 10, 2014 Share Posted April 10, 2014 Well they had to fly to Sydney to refuel with 4 hour layover with a 747-400. Now they can do non stop to MLB. And there are 55 more 787s coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted April 10, 2014 Share Posted April 10, 2014 MLB is the designator for Melbourne International Airport, serving the eponymous small city on the Atlantic coast of Florida. Perhaps you meant MEL, the airport that serves the city in Australia? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted April 10, 2014 Share Posted April 10, 2014 How stupid when working and do a typo! MEL Australia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brijonmang Posted April 14, 2014 Share Posted April 14, 2014 Downtown aerial view as of April 11, 2014. Downtown Houston from Above by supermonkee, on Flickr 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dakota79 Posted April 15, 2014 Share Posted April 15, 2014 Downtown looks small from that view. Lots of room to grow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted April 15, 2014 Share Posted April 15, 2014 Downtown looks small from that view. Lots of room to grow. An excellent perspective of The Parking District. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marcus Allen Posted April 16, 2014 Share Posted April 16, 2014 That last picture needs to be kept for posterity. Take that photo and then compare it to the same shot in 2024 , 2034, etc. I think we will be astounded how much DT is going to change in the next two decades. I think we are in a similar building boom circa 1977 through 1985, even if the towers are shorter, the impact on the DT skyline is going to be dynamic. As exasperated as I could be to see all of those parking lots in the FOURTH largest city in the US, I think of the potential; forward thinking all the way. AND I remind myself of LA. Have we all seen THEIR DT?! Concrete city as well. Sprawling cities such as ours, I feel, are experiencing a reincarnation of their urbanism. Let's see what HTown does with her reincarnation of urbanism. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timoric Posted April 21, 2014 Share Posted April 21, 2014 (edited) - Edited July 8, 2019 by Timoric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 Just booked the Dreamliner 787-9 from IAH to LAX on 7/18/14 BusinessFirst is $1,802.00 roundtrip. I will take a chance in economy for $382 and get my upgrade. There are a lot more seats in the front! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 Please removed it United is using a smaller plane when I got my email. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted June 3, 2014 Share Posted June 3, 2014 Why not try to use a regional upgrade instead of wait for a complimentary one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 I did and it cleared only have 2 left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted June 21, 2014 Share Posted June 21, 2014 I did and it cleared only have 2 left.Great I used 6 global and 4 regional this year. Global services make a huge difference. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 What are the odds that the Houston Airport System and Metro might work together to extend the Southeast Light Rail line to Hobby? I imagine the payoff to connect a smaller airport like Hobby to downtown and other locations might not be enough to justify the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alternativemike Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 What are the odds that the Houston Airport System and Metro might work together to extend the Southeast Light Rail line to Hobby? I imagine the payoff to connect a smaller airport like Hobby to downtown and other locations might not be enough to justify the cost.It would be fantastic if they were to do that or to IAH. One great example of light rail connection to the airport I can think of is in my hometown - Seattle. They finished the Central Link light rail line in 2009. It connects SeaTac International Airport to downtown Seattle. Much like the Southeast Line here, it serves many lower income neighborhoods as well. Much of the line runs at street level like ours here, with some portions elevated and some underground. I've used it many times on trips there and it's very convenient. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 The light rail Seattle has from SeaTac is 17 miles. Our RED line is 12.8 miles and has the second ridership after Boston. The original plan was to expand to both airports. Seattle is just 84 square miles, it could fit inside the loop. METRO cannot get the University Line built. Expanding to the airports is not even on the table. Hopefully in 20 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 What are the odds that the Houston Airport System and Metro might work together to extend the Southeast Light Rail line to Hobby? I imagine the payoff to connect a smaller airport like Hobby to downtown and other locations might not be enough to justify the cost. According to Metro Board member Christof Spieler, "Rail to Hobby and IAH is still in the long term plan, though, given the uncertainties of funding, there’s no way anyone can give a date." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rechlin Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 Speaking of Boston, Boston doesn't even have rail to their airport yet -- they are still running BRT for that line. So I can't see them doing rail to even Hobby anytime soon (though Hobby would be a lot cheaper to get to than Intercontinental). Someday, sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunstar Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 The light rail Seattle has from SeaTac is 17 miles. Our RED line is 12.8 miles and has the second ridership after Boston. The original plan was to expand to both airports. Seattle is just 84 square miles, it could fit inside the loop. METRO cannot get the University Line built. Expanding to the airports is not even on the table. Hopefully in 20 years. The distance from the Northline Transit Center to IAH seems insurmountable, but the Southeast line terminates about 5 or 6 miles away from Hobby. Granted, in light rail terms that's a fortune, but it still seems do-able. In the meantime, they could provide shuttles to travelers from Hobby to the Palm Center Terminus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricco67 Posted July 3, 2014 Author Share Posted July 3, 2014 I don't think it's insurmountable, it's the routing that would trade speed and ridership that would be the challenge. The way Culberson wrote the anti rail bill, it might be prudent if metro looked at other routes to get funding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfastx Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 Speaking of Boston, Boston doesn't even have rail to their airport yet -- they are still running BRT for that line. So I can't see them doing rail to even Hobby anytime soon (though Hobby would be a lot cheaper to get to than Intercontinental). Someday, sure. They have an "airport" station on the blue line that has shuttle buses that get you to the terminals within 5 min. In addition they have the Silver line, so they have two methods of getting to the airport. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 (edited) On the topic at hand an international terminal at this airport will be a great addition. I haven't really seen the need to comment because I scanned through and saw no renderings, floorplans, or links to what it's going to actually be there, but it would be nice if anyone has any info or links that would be much appreciated. Edited July 6, 2014 by bachanon Cleaning up "derailed" thread. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 (in an attempt to get back on topic...) According to its website, Southwest will start service from HOU to Aruba, Montego Bay, and Nassau on August 5. I suspect that is facilitated by the fact that you clear US Customs at the airport in Nassau before you board your return flight. It's going to be nice to have some alternatives. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asubrt Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Regarding the actual topic... is 5 international gates enough? It seems like a pretty small number for an international terminal. But I'm sure they know what they are doing.(in an attempt to get back on topic...) According to its website, Southwest will start service from HOU to Aruba, Montego Bay, and Nassau on August 5. I suspect that is facilitated by the fact that you clear US Customs at the airport in Nassau before you board your return flight. It's going to be nice to have some alternatives. I'm pretty sure those are connecting through Atlanta and Baltimore. Don't think we will see any direct international service until late 2015. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigFootsSocks Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 Regarding the actual topic... is 5 international gates enough? It seems like a pretty small number for an international terminal. But I'm sure they know what they are doing.I'm pretty sure those are connecting through Atlanta and Baltimore. Don't think we will see any direct international service until late 2015.The master plan shows another international wing on the opposite side, but idk the starting date. Maybe they'll bump it up if it becomes apparent that 5 won't be enough. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 What this will really be good for is when IAH starts to really get underway with massive renovations and rebuild. So is this terminal going to be for small nations or nations in this hemisphere? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 I haven't bothered to go through and plot the itineraries, but Orlando would be the most direct intermediate stop (not that Southwest wouldn't be above having you change planes at MDW just for giggles). Last time I went there, that's where Continental had you change onto a turboprop on all flights save the one daily nonstop, which was itself on a regional jet. I don't see going HOU - Nassau nonstop on Southwest for the foreseeable future. As far as whether five gates would be enough - perhaps we could change the name from Hobby to Field of Dreams (build it and they will come). I agree that it will also be really good for IAH to get underway with its massive rebuild of the Leland terminal; however, not to be a broken record or anything, it's nice to have some alternatives. Personally, I prefer going in and out of Hobby when I can because it's more convenient for me. YMMV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 There won't be international flights from houston until the terminal is done. Anything before that will have stops. Basically southwest is going wherever AirTran used to, minus Bermuda. That's the reason AirTran was purchased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bachanon Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 I'm responding to reports from earlier today: Thanks for keeping everything on topic HAIFers and bringing order even when mods are not around! You guys are the best! Please try to remain civil when corralling those who get off track. Unfortunately, I have nothing to offer on the international terminal at Hobby Airport and have not read entire thread: do we know what it will look like? Architects? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HTOWN LIVE Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 I'm responding to reports from earlier today: Thanks for keeping everything on topic HAIFers and bringing order even when mods are not around! You guys are the best! Please try to remain civil when corralling those who get off track. Unfortunately, I have nothing to offer on the international terminal at Hobby Airport and have not read entire thread: do we know what it will look like? Architects? Yes, it’s modeled after the international terminals at the booming Atlanta and Dallas airports, which connect to the city-wide world class mass transit/rail systems in those cities. The politicians and communities there worked intelligently together in unity (as they should). I can’t imagine why Houston won’t go accordingly. What’s stopping it? It’s the city with no limits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollusk Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 b: from culturemap: http://www.houhobby.com/plans/ I've seen some more recent stuff here and there, but it all seems consistent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 The master plan shows another international wing on the opposite side, but idk the starting date. Maybe they'll bump it up if it becomes apparent that 5 won't be enough. According to the Master Plan, the international arrivals concourse currently under construction can be expanded to a total of 12 gates. The wing on the opposite side of the terminal is beyond the master plan time horizon (i.e., beyond 2030) and there is no indication that it is planned to be for an international concourse (but as it is beyond the master plan horizon, they are probably not even attempting to identify it as either international or domestic). Further info from the Master Plan: They anticipate needing 10 international arrival gates by 2020, and 12 by 2030. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Corgan's website has some nice renderings of the Hobby International terminal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luminare Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 Nice job Well I will say it's a little bit to simple, but at least it's sleek and is very open with what seems to be a good amount of tall spaces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asubrt Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 According to the Master Plan, the international arrivals concourse currently under construction can be expanded to a total of 12 gates. The wing on the opposite side of the terminal is beyond the master plan time horizon (i.e., beyond 2030) and there is no indication that it is planned to be for an international concourse (but as it is beyond the master plan horizon, they are probably not even attempting to identify it as either international or domestic). Further info from the Master Plan: They anticipate needing 10 international arrival gates by 2020, and 12 by 2030. Thanks for the info. 10 gates seems a little more in line with what I was expecting, but I guess it will take a few years for them to grow the service. I'm not sure how many international 737 departures per day they can do per gate, but I remember them saying that they would have about 25 total, which would be 5 per gate. Mexico City and Cancun will probably require at least 5 departures per day each not too long after launch, which leaves only 15 flights per day to all other cities combined. Not to mention that the fifth gate is supposed to be common use, so other carriers may use up some of those slots (not sure what airlines will use them, but I imagine some Mexican low cost carriers may launch a route or two, plus VivaAerobus may come over from IAH). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 It's stupid they couldn't start international flights immediately there's technically nothing wrong with the current terminal besides missing a customs facility but it was part of the deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purdueenginerd Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 This rendering is clearly based in fantasy land! There's no way the TSA would be operating that efficiently. They need to add at least 200 more people to the line, and decrease the amount of functioning x-ray scanners to about 2... maybe 3. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montrose1100 Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Will we see smaller carriers join the terminal (fun jet, etc.)? Or is this exclusively southwest?The renderings look good. The huge windows are a big plus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernz Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 It's stupid they couldn't start international flights immediately there's technically nothing wrong with the current terminal besides missing a customs facility but it was part of the deal.?? You just answered your issue. They cannot start int'l flights immediately without a customs (and more importantly, immigration) facility. Why is it stupid then? Technically, there's everything wrong with the current terminal as far as international flights are concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houstontexasjack Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 What this will really be good for is when IAH starts to really get underway with massive renovations and rebuild. So is this terminal going to be for small nations or nations in this hemisphere? I would expect flights solely to and from the Americas out of Hobby's international terminal. Southwest's 737-800's will be the international workhorses for this airport, and their maximum range with decent passenger count and accompanying cargo is northern South America (e.g. Bogota, Quito). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Also,I believe that international departing flights can/will depart from any of the gates. Just arriving international flights must use the international terminal. So, arriving aircraft can be moved to other gates to reboard. This way, each of the five gates could handle significantly more arriving flights per day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 ?? You just answered your issue. They cannot start int'l flights immediately without a customs (and more importantly, immigration) facility. Why is it stupid then? Technically, there's everything wrong with the current terminal as far as international flights are concerned.Creating a customs facility does not require a new terminal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Will we see smaller carriers join the terminal (fun jet, etc.)? Or is this exclusively southwest?The renderings look good. The huge windows are a big plus.I think southwest has 4 of the 5 gates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Slick. I don't think that SWA is plopping down hundreds of millions of dollars if it wasn't necessary. Do you? International arrival passengers have to be separated and routed to a immigration and customs facility. How would you do that, without rebuilding the current terminal? Adding 5 new gates, where this can be done, accomplishes this, in addition it adds the needed capacity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Slick. I don't think that SWA is plopping down hundreds of millions of dollars if it wasn't necessary. Do you? International arrival passengers have to be separated and routed to a immigration and customs facility. How would you do that, without rebuilding the current terminal? Adding 5 new gates, where this can be done, accomplishes this, in addition it adds the needed capacity.It was part of the deal. There are plenty of terminals globally where customs facilities are built later for a few million to handle international flights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fernz Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 It was part of the deal. There are plenty of terminals globally where customs facilities are built later for a few million to handle international flights.You can build a facility or you can build a terminal, but the fact is a new building is needed to house the customs and immigration functions. While you're at it, you might as well build the additional gates you need for those new international flights, unless you are willing to drop existing national routes, because there are no idle gates in that airport. And if you did that, you would have a terrible experience because of the retrofit needed to segregate those existing gates for international travelers.Not sure what 'deal' you are talking about, but Southwest is footing the bill for the most part. I'm sure they looked at the best value while keeping their customers happy. They are a profitable company for a reason. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nativehoustonion Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I do not think 5 gates is enough for Southwest to really make a presence. Just got back from Playa del Carmen flew out of Cancun. They built a very nice International Terminal with 26 gates terminal 3. United had the most flights then any other carrier. A flight almost every hour to Houston, also Denver, Chicago, Newark, Los Angeles, San Francisco. The CEO of Southwest said it will take them five years to make their presence know in Latin America. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Vik Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 You can build a facility or you can build a terminal, but the fact is a new building is needed to house the customs and immigration functions. While you're at it, you might as well build the additional gates you need for those new international flights, unless you are willing to drop existing national routes, because there are no idle gates in that airport. And if you did that, you would have a terrible experience because of the retrofit needed to segregate those existing gates for international travelers.Not sure what 'deal' you are talking about, but Southwest is footing the bill for the most part. I'm sure they looked at the best value while keeping their customers happy. They are a profitable company for a reason.Explain airports like Austin and San Antonio where there is no segregation of outgoing passengers and no separate building just for customs that I know of for incoming international passengers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naviguessor Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Because they were designed that way, or retrofitted accordingly. And are the only commercial airports in those cities. Trying to understand your point. Surely you have travelled internationally and understand this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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