VicMan Posted April 12, 2009 Share Posted April 12, 2009 I think the City of Sugar Land should try to attract limited commercial airline service to its airport, especially if the economy improves.Maybe American Eagle could fly from Sugar Land to Dallas/Fort Worth.I know back in the early 1990s that Conquest Airlines used to fly to Sugar Land (I think from Austin). Nowadays companies have relocated to Sugar Land and there is higher yielding (i.e. profitable) traffic in the area.If AA chooses to do this it should make sure that the service is still economically competitive with Continental and Southwest services to Dallas from the other airports. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 12, 2009 Share Posted April 12, 2009 Would that mean that SGR would have to comply with TSA standards? That could increase their operating budget pretty immensely, whereas right now you can just walk in, meet the owner or pilot in the lounge (who has already worked out fees with the front desk), and go hop in the plane, hassle-free.How do the economics of charter flights compare to commercial service? I'd think that it would work pretty well for large groups, but that offering them to individuals from the general public would be too low-volume to justify the kind of overhead (especially advertising) necessary to support it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted April 12, 2009 Author Share Posted April 12, 2009 Would that mean that SGR would have to comply with TSA standards? That could increase their operating budget pretty immensely, whereas right now you can just walk in, meet the owner or pilot in the lounge (who has already worked out fees with the front desk), and go hop in the plane, hassle-free.How do the economics of charter flights compare to commercial service? I'd think that it would work pretty well for large groups, but that offering them to individuals from the general public would be too low-volume to justify the kind of overhead (especially advertising) necessary to support it.I'm not entirely sure about the specifics of what requires FAA-mandated security. In the 1990s Conquest operated Fairchild Swearingen Metroliners; each can carry up to 19 passengers. I'm sure that the FAA required security at Sugar Land airport for the Conquest flights. I'm don't know if the security in 2009 for a similar American Eagle ERJ-135s, ERJ-145s, or ATR72s (whichever is best for the route) would be substantially different than the security for Conquest Metroliners in the 1990s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeebus Posted April 12, 2009 Share Posted April 12, 2009 First you want the bus to run down MY streets, now you want commercial flights at MY airport? Vicman, where do YOU live again? Oh yeah - the inner-loop. Are you just trying to punish those of us who chose to get away from all the things you're suggesting now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 First you want the bus to run down MY streets, now you want commercial flights at MY airport?Vicman, where do YOU live again? Oh yeah - the inner-loop. Are you just trying to punish those of us who chose to get away from all the things you're suggesting now? Hehehe.. Well, it's a bit different having an ATR-72 take off twice a day (in addition to the general aviation traffic) versus the homeowners at Garden Villas, who hear a 737 take off about every minute Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheNiche Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 Hehehe.. Well, it's a bit different having an ATR-72 take off twice a day (in addition to the general aviation traffic) versus the homeowners at Garden Villas, who hear a 737 take off about every minute I can't recall ever having flown a commercial flight as far a distance as from Houston to Dallas on a prop engine plane. How can you be sure that the ATR-22 would be the plane being used? So I have to fall back on my earlier question about the economic feasibility of commercial airline service vs. charter service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 In 1998 I flew on Atlantic Southeast Airlines (dba Delta Connection) from Houston Hobby to Dallas/Fort Worth on an Embraer EMB-120.There is a possibility that ERJs could be used, but there's also a possibility ATRs could be used too. I guess it depends on the specific economics of SGR-DFW. ATR-72s have been used for longer services, I.E. Bari to Djerba.Using this: http://gc.kls2.com/* SGR-DFW: 240 miles* BRI-DJE: 599 milesSo SGR-DFW isn't close to the full range of an ATR72.Many prop planes are economically good for shorthaul routes, and some airlines, realizing this, are putting Q400s in place of regional jets. I.E. Colgan Air, dba Continental Airlines, operates Q400s out of Newark to some places on the Eastern Seaboard. If you have heard of Porter Airlines, it operates Q400 flights from Toronto City Centre (YTZ) to Newark Airport (EWR): That is 336 miles.Also, notice that Executive Airlines dba American Eagle operates ATR72s on many Puerto Rico to Caribbean island routes.I'm not sure what the answer would be for charter vs. scheduled. I know businessmen like having multiple frequencies, but I'm not sure how many frequencies would be enough for Sugar Land to Dallas.EDIT: There's an airliners.net thread from 2007 about ideas for alternative airports in Houston and Dallas: http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/g...quest#ID3446617I can't recall ever having flown a commercial flight as far a distance as from Houston to Dallas on a prop engine plane. How can you be sure that the ATR-22 would be the plane being used? So I have to fall back on my earlier question about the economic feasibility of commercial airline service vs. charter service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxmulder Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 Um...You guys aren't that far from hobby...Besides won't some NIMBY raise a fit about the noise? American Already charges an arm and a leg just to FLY PLUS bags...You could save that money and use the toll road to get to hobby and park for a few days... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 Um...You guys aren't that far from hobby...Besides won't some NIMBY raise a fit about the noise? American Already charges an arm and a leg just to FLY PLUS bags...You could save that money and use the toll road to get to hobby and park for a few days...1. SGR already has general aviation jet traffic, so I'm not sure if some additional ATRs will raise any noise levels to significant levels. Now, military aircraft would be a huge annoyance.2. Continental also charges for one or two bags for economy class pax on basic tickets in the U.S., but Southwest does not. Out of all of the major U.S. airlines Southwest is the only one that has two bags free within the Continental U.S. Most of the others charge even for one bag. To be fair, Southwest is the dominant carrier at Hobby and many go to Hobby specifically to fly Southwest. However there are ways to avoid the bag fee on AA, CO, or other carriers (packing light and only taking carryons, being a member of the frequent flyer program, etc)3. American Eagle, or whatever airline decides to fly to SGR, would have to attract people from Richmond, Rosenberg, Sugar Land, Missouri City, Stafford, and far southwest Houston who want the convenience of flying out of SGR as opposed to HOU or IAH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsb320 Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 I can't recall ever having flown a commercial flight as far a distance as from Houston to Dallas on a prop engine plane. How can you be sure that the ATR-22 would be the plane being used? So I have to fall back on my earlier question about the economic feasibility of commercial airline service vs. charter service.American Eagle flys prop planes from Hobby to DFW. I recall they moved major portions of their fleet down here to a warmer client. There were cold weather problems with these planes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VicMan Posted April 13, 2009 Author Share Posted April 13, 2009 American Eagle flys prop planes from Hobby to DFW. I recall they moved major portions of their fleet down here to a warmer client. There were cold weather problems with these planes.Yes, the 1994 Roselawn, Indiana incident caused AA to relocate several ATR aircraft to warmer areas.Anyway, a search of AA.com shows that on April 16 on the Hobby-DFW route the AA airlines will fly daily 9 flights that day. 4 of them will use ATR-72s and 5 of them will use ERJ-145s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hartmann Posted May 7, 2010 Share Posted May 7, 2010 I can't recall ever having flown a commercial flight as far a distance as from Houston to Dallas on a prop engine plane. How can you be sure that the ATR-22 would be the plane being used? So I have to fall back on my earlier question about the economic feasibility of commercial airline service vs. charter service. Rumor has it that when Continental gets the Bombardier Dash 8 in Houston, the first route will be to Lubbock. Continental used to run service between IAH and Ellington Field and Hobby and in the 80's Eastern Express ran service from SGR to IAH. It really wouldn't take much to make SGR compliant with TSA regulations or FAA regs. Just look at Tyler Pounds Field. If you really want an experience, buy a ticket from Allentown, PA on Continental. The first segment is a bus ride from the airport to Newark Liberty International Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LTAWACS Posted May 7, 2010 Share Posted May 7, 2010 Not a bad idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Posted May 8, 2010 Share Posted May 8, 2010 The Eastern Express was operated by Metro Airlines flying Twin Otters to IAH from SGR. I took those flights on a number of occasions when I was working in Sugar Land and making frequent business trips. this was around 1981-2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.