Why Has San Antonio's Airport Always Been So "Po Dunk"?

[yomama21]

I really wish we had a huge big airport outside the city like all other major cities do with flights going to europe, china........ Sucks having to always fly into DFW or George Bush to go international. Why not make one between here and Austin that's huge and pimped out? That wouldn't be a bad idea. Has SA even ever considered or talked about having such an airport?

[duckdick]

No. We do not want San Antonio to become a "city". We like our "town" feel.

Signed,

San Antonio City Data Forum

[T Park]

Any clue at how much that would cost, and how much LAND you would need for that?!?

[duckdick]

Any clue at how much that would cost, and how much LAND you would need for that?!?

it's called planning ahead.

Something San Antonio and Bexar County officials have never done.

Example...

Loop 1604....2 fucking lanes each way???

Stop lights???

No real interchange at 281???

You gotta be kidding me with this shit.

[samikeyp]

Isn't the airport going through some major renovation at the moment?

[exstatic]

I really wish we had a huge big airport outside the city like all other major cities do with flights going to europe, china........ Sucks having to always fly into DFW or George Bush to go international. Why not make one between here and Austin that's huge and pimped out? That wouldn't be a bad idea. Has SA even ever considered or talked about having such an airport?

I think the idea was floated about, but once Bergstrom AFB closed, and Austin converted it into their primary airport, that was the end of that.

I always thought we should have followed suit and converted Kelly. The current SAIAP has virtually no room for expansion, shown by them shoe-horning in that third tiny terminal. Kelly had a whole fucking empty closed AFB. They have enough space to support the Guard mission, the Lackland mission, the contract maintenance depot and commercial flights. Hell, they used to land the 747/shuttle vehicle there. I think the runways are able to handle about anything, including jumbos.

[samikeyp]

I think the idea was floated about, but once Bergstrom AFB closed, and Austin converted it into their primary airport, that was the end of that.

I always thought we should have followed suit and converted Kelly. The current SAIAP has virtually no room for expansion, shown by them shoe-horning in that third tiny terminal. Kelly had a whole fucking empty closed AFB. They have enough space to support the Guard mission, the Lackland mission, the contract maintenance depot and commercial flights. Hell, they used to land the 747/shuttle vehicle there. I think the runways are able to handle about anything, including jumbos.

You are correct sir.

Actually the airport can also handle the 747's. They come in for repairs at Dee Howard.

[duckdick]

Isn't the airport going through some major renovation at the moment?

Yea....a renovation that would be suitable for a city that is 2/3 it's current's size and 10 years ago.

All anyone would ever need to know about San Antonio's business attitude and mentality can be seen from our downtown skyline.

Beige, brown, old, concrete.

Those are metaphores for this city.

Old is self explanitory.

brown and beige represent the plain feel of this city

and concrete is hard and solid as in how san antonio is stuck in its conservative old fashioned ways.


get a rope...find a tree.

grab a beer and washhhhhhh the spurssss gamee

[samikeyp]

Yea....a renovation that would be suitable for a city that is 2/3 it's current's size and 10 years ago.

All anyone would ever need to know about San Antonio's business attitude and mentality can be seen from our downtown skyline.

Beige, brown, old, concrete.

Those are metaphores for this city.

Old is self explanitory.

brown and beige represent the plain feel of this city

and concrete is hard and solid as in how san antonio is stuck in its conservative old fashioned ways.


get a rope...find a tree.

grab a beer and washhhhhhh the spurssss gamee

Nothing wrong with that last line. :toast

[duckdick]

i'd agree mikey but as many have said before, the spurs success is one of the few bright spots for this otherwise sleepy town.

[samikeyp]

i'd agree mikey but as many have said before, the spurs success is one of the few bright spots for this otherwise sleepy town.

I would disagree but to each his own. I think SA is unique and special in its own way but that is me being someone born and raised there. Especially when you move to a city that is about 1/3 the size.

[ShoogarBear]

Builing a large meta-port between SAT and AUS would have the drawback of a considerably longer travel time getting to/from the city. You'd still need to keep an airport close to the city for commuter traffic ala Love Field and Hobby.

Even if such an airport were to be built, I doubt there would be enough international traffic to justify taking flights away from DFW and IAH.

Having said that, San Antonio will probably need to do something about SAT, because it probably can't support much more traffic than it currently has.

[duckdick]

the SAN ANTONIO airport has such an adorable website also...

really world class...

http://www.sanantonio.gov/aviation/

the smiling cartoon airplane and taxi are so darn cute.

really appealing to anyone over 4 years old...

[Viva Las Espuelas]

with oil at the price it is, airlines going out of business left and right, and talk about possibly nationalizing the airline industry, I doubt that's on any drawing board right now.

[spursfan09]

Everything about SA is po dunk. Haven't you asked Charles Barkley?

[T Park]

I mean this in the nicest way, if its so horrible living here, just move.

[Extra Stout]

What do I need an expanded airport for? I can get anywhere I need to go eventually. Politicians just trying to take my hard-earned money away.

(AT&T leaves, cites inadequate airport)


Carpetbaggers. They're probably going to go bankrupt in 10 years anyway.

[samikeyp]

With IAH and DFW being major hubs and so close that works against SA. You would have to get a major airline to focus its Latin American traffic here to help and even that would be dicey.

[duckdick]

I mean this in the nicest way, if its so horrible living here, just move.

thats exactly what i am talking about.

typical small minded people who say if you dont like how we do it, then leave.

you probably have one of those bumper stickers on your truck that says TEXAS NO VACCANCIES

[samikeyp]

thats exactly what i am talking about.

typical small minded people who say if you dont like how we do it, then leave.

you probably have one of those bumper stickers on your truck that says TEXAS NO VACCANCIES

To be fair...you will get that from someone anywhere you go. I am curious though, and I honestly do not mean this in a mean-spirited way. Is it the city in general or certain parts you don't like and if so, what is keeping you here? Again, not trying to be a dick...its tough though with the typed word and I don't think TPark was trying to be a jerk.

[yomama21]

I think the consensus is that being the seventh largest city in the nation, many feel that things (like the airport) should be much better than they are and more advanced just like other major cities. Hell, there are lots of cities that aren't even in the top 10 and they are and have been light years ahead of SA.

[samikeyp]

I think the consensus is that being the seventh largest city in the nation, many feel that things (like the airport) should be much better than they are and more advanced just like other major cities. Hell, there are lots of cities that aren't even in the top 10 and they are and have been light years ahead of SA.

Very true and I have thought that about the airport for years. I like the idea of a regional airport between Austin and SA and then you could make Bergstrom and SAT like Love Field or Hobby. Just not sure its economically feasible.

[mrsmaalox]

Yea....a renovation that would be suitable for a city that is 2/3 it's current's size and 10 years ago.

All anyone would ever need to know about San Antonio's business attitude and mentality can be seen from our downtown skyline.

Beige, brown, old, concrete.

Those are metaphores for this city.

Old is self explanitory.

brown and beige represent the plain feel of this city

and concrete is hard and solid as in how san antonio is stuck in its conservative old fashioned ways.


get a rope...find a tree.

grab a beer and washhhhhhh the spurssss gamee

I don't have a problem with how this city looks. Beige, brown, concrete gray are how most of the buildings I've seen are built. But having lived in much greener states, even with buildings constructed much the same way, Texas does look very "stark" but I think it has more to do with geography than actual design choices. And a huge airport between us and Austin may be a nice thing for Austinites and San Antonians, but this airport serves many more communities to whom it wouldn't be beneficial. I also don't think a huge new airport here will do anything to boost the major airlines' financial problems. I do have a problem with SA's lack of vision; public transportation (ie a lightrail) is a bigger need than an airport or toll roads at this time. I hope this is realized before someone decides the solution is to pave the entire state. Unfortunately, this entire state is pretty much hunkered down in it's conservativism and good ol boy politics; change is a slow thing but it is happening.
That being said, I love living in Texas and I LOVE San Antonio. I will live here the rest of my life! :)

[samikeyp]

Good point....a regional airport south of town might work...the land is certainly there. And the only other airports are in the valley and Corpus. Then again, something like that could kill those airports.

[yomama21]

I don't have a problem with how this city looks. Beige, brown, concrete gray are how most of the buildings I've seen are built. But having lived in much greener states, even with buildings constructed much the same way, Texas does look very "stark" but I think it has more to do with geography than actual design choices. And a huge airport between us and Austin may be a nice thing for Austinites and San Antonians, but this airport serves many more communities to whom it wouldn't be beneficial. I also don't think a huge new airport here will do anything to boost the major airlines' financial problems. I do have a problem with SA's lack of vision; public transportation (ie a lightrail) is a bigger need than an airport or toll roads at this time. I hope this is realized before someone decides the solution is to pave the entire state. Unfortunately, this entire state is pretty much hunkered down in it's conservativism and good ol boy politics; change is a slow thing but it is happening.
That being said, I love living in Texas and I LOVE San Antonio. I will live here the rest of my life! :)


I actually voted for lightrail years back when it was on the ballots and think that if we knew what was going on now with gas and all that, I think there would of been a different outcome perhaps. But who knows.

[samikeyp]

Good point. I supported that as well.

[boutons_]

Huge corporations have big installations in Austin, requiring good connections to everywhere.

Austin has 100s of $Ms generated by nothing other than being state capitol with tons of state HQs of business and professional assocations.

Austin has the University of Texas "industry". SA has the Medical Center, but Medical Centers are dime a dozen as Americans everywhere make themselves sicker and more decrepit.

SA does have the military $$ and attendant civil service bureaucracies.

SA has almost no large corps HQ'd or ever present here, pretty much due to SA not having a top flight university for science or engineering or medicine. The Toyota plant takes it in the ear as low-mileage pickups take it in the ear.

San Antonio will always be way behind HOU and DFW as air hubs and business centers, and very probably the new SA AP won't gain a step on Austin, either.

I remember a long time ago that a very large %age of SA couldn't read/write/speak English. That's probaby changed (lower %age), but SA has quite large percentage of poor, manul-labor Hispanics that is not offset by a high-earning middle class, making SA "smaller" than the metro population would suggest.

I think we're pretty much stuck with SA being what it is, poor sister to Austin, Dallas, and Houston, rather than outstripping the growth in national wealth. And the podunk airport, and ATT HQ lost, reflects that status.

"The median income for a household in the city is $36,214, and the median income for a family is $53,100. Males have a median income of $30,061 versus $24,444 for females. The per capita income (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Per_capita_income) for the city is $17,487. 17.3% of the population and 14.0% of families are below the poverty line (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_line). Out of the total population, 24.3% of those under the age of 18 and 13.5% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Antonio,_Texas

Austin:

"The median income for a household in the city was $42,689, and the median income for a family was $54,091. Males had a median income of $35,545 vs. $30,046 for females. The per capita income (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Per_capita_income) for the city was $24,163. About 9.1% of families and 14.4% of the population were below the poverty line (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_line), including 16.5% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over. From the year 2000 to 2005, the median house price in Austin grew 34 percent."

[jack sommerset]

Security tried to ban me from that airport. In 1998 I flew to DC and on my way back I lost my wallet. They held me there for 2 hours calling (seriously) all over the country looking for a warrant or arrest record. I just laughed the whole time.After they relized I was not a terrorist the head of security there told me never to come back to the airport again. A real loser Wyatt Earp wanna be. Of course the idiot was all talk. I told him to fuck off and got a lawyer to tell them to fuck off too. I hate that Airport.

[ShoogarBear]

Security tried to ban me from that airport. In 1998 I flew to DC and on my way back I lost my wallet. They held me there for 2 hours calling (seriously) all over the country looking for a warrant or arrest record. I just laughed the whole time.After they relized I was not a terrorist the head of security there told me never to come back to the airport again. A real loser Wyatt Earp wanna be. Of course the idiot was all talk. I told him to fuck off and got a lawyer to tell them to fuck off too. I hate that Airport.

Why would they care if you lost your wallet on the way back? Who checks ID after you get off the plane? Especially pre-9/11?

[jack sommerset]

I went to pay for parking. All I had was a check book. When security showed up they searched my car. I just moved to SA and I had 3-4 different things with different addresses on it address to me. They thought I was not me.

[Chief]

Why would they care if you lost your wallet on the way back? Who checks ID after you get off the plane? Especially pre-9/11?

same thing i was thinkin

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

ex already touched on it, but they fucked up when they had Kelly sitting there empty. That would have been the perfect place to put in a huge airport. Too bad City Hall was so caught up in taking care of those who were tied in to maintenance deals with the AF over there.

Poor vision, as usual, from the bums in City Hall.

[Twisted_Dawg]

In the 1960's General Motors wanted to build an assembly plant here but was rebuffed by the Olmos Park and Alamo Heights old money that did not want a nasty union shop here. GM built the plant in Arlington. The 281 North Freeway took years to build due to lawsuits from that same Olmos Park and Alamo Heights crowd that didn't want a freeway in their backyard. And the reason we never had an interchange at 410 & 281 North was because Sam Barshop owned all the land and had the power to squash any plans for one. For years the city was run and controlled by the Good Government League who were bought, owned and control by the wealthy elite. Now we are governed by young professional politicians that dont know shit.

In the late 1800's San Antonio had a population of over 50,000 and was the largest city in the state. It was a booming place with money and a burgeoning red light district with an ample supply of gambling and women. It was a happening place, sort of a mini Las Vegas for back then.

Somehow, someway we never kept that momentum from the late 1800's. We got stuck with some mediocore leadership. While we will never catch and be a Dallas or Houston, this still isn't a bad place to live, work and raise kids. It is what it is.

So forget that Austin/SA airport. That idea was kicked around for years. With the money Austin spent retro fitting Bergstrom, they would never be interested in another airport. We are stuck with our little Hooterville airport which we can drive to in about 20 minutes, get in and out of he airport in a breeze and rarely be delayed. And that ain't all bad.

[T Park]

The town is growing and they are building better infrastructure, i just don't think theres anywhere to go with a new airport, plus the cost would probobly rival that damn airport in Denver.

[ShoogarBear]

ex already touched on it, but they fucked up when they had Kelly sitting there empty. That would have been the perfect place to put in a huge airport. Too bad City Hall was so caught up in taking care of those who were tied in to maintenance deals with the AF over there.

Poor vision, as usual, from the bums in City Hall.

The only problem with Kelly Field is that you still have Lackland AFB sitting there, without a field of its own and presumably with a need for one. So they would either have to build something for Lackland or work out some kind of shared arrangement (and do you really want military and commercial airports next to each other?).

[Twisted_Dawg]

Yea....a renovation that would be suitable for a city that is 2/3 it's current's size and 10 years ago.

All anyone would ever need to know about San Antonio's business attitude and mentality can be seen from our downtown skyline.

Beige, brown, old, concrete.

Those are metaphores for this city.

Old is self explanitory.

brown and beige represent the plain feel of this city

and concrete is hard and solid as in how san antonio is stuck in its conservative old fashioned ways.


get a rope...find a tree.

grab a beer and washhhhhhh the spurssss gamee

Are you saying you have never seen that hideous enchilada red main library downtown?

[davi78239]

The town is growing and they are building better infrastructure, i just don't think theres anywhere to go with a new airport, plus the cost would probobly rival that damn airport in Denver.


That Damn airport is very nice in Denver though. Me and my wife were there about two years ago and it's a dandy, especially there car rental system. You don't even have to speak to anyone over the counter. The whole process is computerized and shit. I think it was on the best airports to get laid over on lists not too long ago.

[ShoogarBear]

Denver airport? :vomit:

It's--no joke--a 30 minute drive to get to the terminal AFTER you enter the airport.

[davi78239]

Denver airport? :vomit:

It's--no joke--a 30 minute drive to get to the terminal AFTER you enter the airport.

well, besides all that. it's still a nice airport.

[samikeyp]

The only problem with Kelly Field is that you still have Lackland AFB sitting there, without a field of its own and presumably with a need for one. So they would either have to build something for Lackland or work out some kind of shared arrangement (and do you really want military and commercial airports next to each other?).

Wichita Falls has that. Sheppard AFB and the Commerical airport use the same runways. It works for them but probably not in SA.

[samikeyp]

well, besides all that. it's still a nice airport.

When the baggage claim belts aren't shooting your luggage at you. :)


It is nice though.

[timvp]

Buddy Holly to have a meltdown in 3 ... 2 ...

[MannyIsGod]

We're San Antonio, not Houston or Dallas.

We're fucking small. We're not that big.

Why is our airport small? Is it really that hard of a question to answer?

[boutons_]

somebody thinking Toyota might not be forever:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/columnists/rrivard/stories/MYSA070608.03B.Rivard.3e34ff2.html

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

The only problem with Kelly Field is that you still have Lackland AFB sitting there, without a field of its own and presumably with a need for one. So they would either have to build something for Lackland or work out some kind of shared arrangement (and do you really want military and commercial airports next to each other?).

That's not that uncommon:

* Wichita Falls/Shepherd AFB.

* Okinawa, Japan

* Honolulu/Hickam AFB

* St. Louis

* Phoenix

* Ft. Wayne International

* Portland

* Syracuse, NY

* Albuquerque, NM/Kirkland AFB

* Colorado Springs

* Eglin AFB/Valpo (Florida)

* Frankfurt, Germany/Rhien-Mann

There's probably more than that that I'm thinking of. These are ones I've flown in/out of and/or know off the top of my head.

Making it dual use and the new SA International Airport probably would have actually been the perfect scenario.

[tlongII]

That's not that uncommon:

* Wichita Falls/Shepherd AFB.

* Okinawa, Japan

* Honolulu/Hickam AFB

* St. Louis

* Phoenix

* Ft. Wayne International

* Portland

* Syracuse, NY

* Albuquerque, NM/Kirkland AFB

* Colorado Springs

* Eglin AFB/Valpo (Florida)

* Frankfurt, Germany/Rhien-Mann

There's probably more than that that I'm thinking of. These are ones I've flown in/out of and/or know off the top of my head.

Making it dual use and the new SA International Airport probably would have actually been the perfect scenario.


I was going to say our airport functions fine.

[ShoogarBear]

I was going to say our airport functions fine.

Yes, but we are talking about making the airport *less* podunk.

Out of those airports listed, the only ones that could be considered major airports, on the scale of DFW and IAH, would be Honolulu (which is a special geographic situation), and Frankfurt .

Lambert-St. Louis and Scott AFB are separate facilities.

Sharing Kelly and SAT would have been a good solution in a lot of ways, I just think it would not have helped to make SAT more of a major airport.

[Mark in Austin]

Here's the problem:

They're spending MILLIONS to build two new terminals, and those two terminals will only have 12 gates total, with the possibility to expand in the future to 18. That is Fucking Stupid. When this is done, SAT will have a whopping 3 more gates than ABIA currently has. Here's the really insane part though. After spending all those millions of dollars, it will only be a net increase of 3 gates. What. The. Fuck?

"Terminals B & C
Timeline:“B” completion in 2010
“C” completion in 2012
Description: Passengers at San Antonio International Airport will be enjoying two new terminal facilities in the future. “Terminal B” is an 8-gate facility that’s being constructed directly between the existing structures, Terminals One & Two. Once, completed “B” will serve as a replacement facility for Terminal Two, which is slated for demolition. “Terminal C” will be constructed to the West of the Terminal Two footprint. Initially it will house five gates but is designed to accommodate eleven gates should passenger growth warrant."

[baseline bum]

Denver airport? :vomit:

It's--no joke--a 30 minute drive to get to the terminal AFTER you enter the airport.

That's the only airport I've ever been to that had a subway.

[exstatic]

Yes, but we are talking about making the airport *less* podunk.

Out of those airports listed, the only ones that could be considered major airports, on the scale of DFW and IAH, would be Honolulu (which is a special geographic situation), and Frankfurt .

Lambert-St. Louis and Scott AFB are separate facilities.

Sharing Kelly and SAT would have been a good solution in a lot of ways, I just think it would not have helped to make SAT more of a major airport.

With the Kelly side closed, you could have put up any sized terminal(s) you wanted. Runways are runways, but the biggest problem with SAIAP is that there are only 20-something gates and no real room for many more.

[Mark in Austin]

and then of course there's the flip side. If you move to Kelly, you then have 2,800 city owned acres in the heart of the north side. It could be developed like Stapleton in Denver or Mueller in Austin into dense, walkable communities that add millions to the city's tax base.

[travis2]

That's the only airport I've ever been to that had a subway.

Atlanta has one...

[Twisted_Dawg]

Here's the problem:

They're spending MILLIONS to build two new terminals, and those two terminals will only have 12 gates total, with the possibility to expand in the future to 18. That is Fucking Stupid. When this is done, SAT will have a whopping 3 more gates than ABIA currently has. Here's the really insane part though. After spending all those millions of dollars, it will only be a net increase of 3 gates. What. The. Fuck?

"Terminals B & C
Timeline:“B” completion in 2010
“C” completion in 2012
Description: Passengers at San Antonio International Airport will be enjoying two new terminal facilities in the future. “Terminal B” is an 8-gate facility that’s being constructed directly between the existing structures, Terminals One & Two. Once, completed “B” will serve as a replacement facility for Terminal Two, which is slated for demolition. “Terminal C” will be constructed to the West of the Terminal Two footprint. Initially it will house five gates but is designed to accommodate eleven gates should passenger growth warrant."

So we are going to have complete different sets of security, bag screeners, etc, etc, to handle 8 additional gates in B Terminal and another set to handle 5 gates in C Terminal???

[tlongII]

Yes, but we are talking about making the airport *less* podunk.

Out of those airports listed, the only ones that could be considered major airports, on the scale of DFW and IAH, would be Honolulu (which is a special geographic situation), and Frankfurt .

Lambert-St. Louis and Scott AFB are separate facilities.

Sharing Kelly and SAT would have been a good solution in a lot of ways, I just think it would not have helped to make SAT more of a major airport.

HELLO! San Antonio's airport has a ways to go before it would be considered in the same class as PDX.

[CosmicCowboy]

Airlines are going broke and eliminating flights all over the country. All airlines except Southwest use the hub and spoke system and there was never any way that SA was gonna be a hub with Dallas and Houston so close. Even if we built a HUGE airport it wouldn't be a hub/International airport.

[samikeyp]

Too bad they couldn't convince Southwest to pull out of Hobby and Love and move to SA. That would be great but would never happen.

[johnsmith]

The town is growing and they are building better infrastructure, i just don't think theres anywhere to go with a new airport, plus the cost would probobly rival that damn airport in Denver.

The airport in Denver is really nice. If I had to pick one to be stuck in, it would probably be that one.

Having said that, you're right, the price was outfuckingrageous. United Airlines fucked themselves by being such a big part of it.

And I think Shoog touched on it earlier in the thread, he's right, once you're in, you still have another 30 minutes to go.

And let's not mention if you're a Denver local, it takes a fucking hour minimum from any part of the city to get to.

For all the bitching about SA's airport, I love the fact that I can get there with only an hour to spare and make my flight no problems.

[Jimcs50]

So you have to fly to Dallas first....bfd. :rolleyes

I have to drive to Houston (90 mins) when I go anywhere, because I will not fly on the puddle jumpers that fly to Dallas and Houston from College Station. At least you do not have to drive 90 miles every time you go anywhere.

[Kori Ellis]

Keep the airport small!

I love that the airport isn't crowded ... and there's direct flights to Vegas, so what else matters? ;)

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Too bad they couldn't convince Southwest to pull out of Hobby and Love and move to SA. That would be great but would never happen.

Huh? Those are just their airports in Houston and Dallas. I guess you could argue about them moving their corporate HQ to SA, but that will never happen as long as Kelleher is still alive.

[samikeyp]

Huh? Those are just their airports in Houston and Dallas. I guess you could argue about them moving their corporate HQ to SA, but that will never happen as long as Kelleher is still alive.

That was my point. Concentrate the majority of their flights in San Antonio. If that were to happen, then it would probably be preceded by the moving of the corporate HQ. But neither will happen even after Kelleher is free to move about the afterlife.

[Extra Stout]

That was my point. Concentrate the majority of their flights in San Antonio. If that were to happen, then it would probably be preceded by the moving of the corporate HQ. But neither will happen even after Kelleher is free to move about the afterlife.
1) Southwest does not use the hub-and-spoke model. Never has. It is a point-to-point airline. Its maintenance operations are decentralized/outsourced. This business model is why it clobbers the traditional airlines. Centralizing would be a bad business decision. Centralizing in a cramped, outmoded facility like SAIA would get the CEO lynched by shareholders by the end of the business day.

2) Southwest has its facilities in Houston and Dallas almost to itself.

3) Even as secondary airports in their respective cities, Love Field and Hobby nevertheless have capacities comparable to SAIA.

[Extra Stout]

4) Not to be ugly, but Houston and Dallas are vital business centers with 5.5-6 million people each. San Antonio is... not.

[CubanMustGo]

SW is kicking everyone else's ass because they had the foresight to hedge their jet fuel prices. As a result they pay 20-30% less that what most of the majors do. Their savings in the first quarter? $291M. Their net profit for the quarter, including those savings? $31M. http://www.redorbit.com/news/business/1465306/airlines_hedge_against_soaring_costs_of_jet_fuel/index.html

The other factors contribute but jet fuel costs are the #1 reason SW continues to do "well" while the legacy carriers don't.

[N.Y. Johnny]

Keep the airport small!

I love that the airport isn't crowded ... and there's direct flights to Vegas, so what else matters? ;)



I agree with this but we're probably the only ones :lol. I hated flying into Washinton or N.Y. :wow

[samikeyp]

1) Southwest does not use the hub-and-spoke model. Never has. It is a point-to-point airline. Its maintenance operations are decentralized/outsourced. This business model is why it clobbers the traditional airlines. Centralizing would be a bad business decision. Centralizing in a cramped, outmoded facility like SAIA would get the CEO lynched by shareholders by the end of the business day.

2) Southwest has its facilities in Houston and Dallas almost to itself.

3) Even as secondary airports in their respective cities, Love Field and Hobby nevertheless have capacities comparable to SAIA.

exactly...which is why it would never happen .

[ShoogarBear]

HELLO! San Antonio's airport has a ways to go before it would be considered in the same class as PDX.

Yes, and the Spurs would have a ways to go before they would be considered in the same class as the Trail Blazers. The point is that's not the direction to which we aspire. :p:

[tlongII]

Yes, and the Spurs would have a ways to go before they would be considered in the same class as the Trail Blazers. The point is that's not the direction to which we aspire. :p:

Oh! You were making a point!

[50 cent]

San Antonio's terminals definitely need a refresh, but these talks of a newer, international hub are crazy.

There is simply no way San Antonio will be a hub for any airline because 3 of the 4 largest airlines in the US (American, Southwest, and Continental) are based out of Houston or Dallas.

In addition, Mexicana Airlines is already code share with American, so it makes no sense for them to have a larger presence in San Antonio when everybody can be routed through DFW.

Geographically speaking, if USAirways, JetBlue, Delta, etc. wanted to hub somewhere, STL makes a hell of a lot more sense being in the middle of the country and not competing directly with DFW and IAH.

At least SAT is in a good location and not way out of town like DEN or DFW.

I fly about 75 times a year for business and trust me, you learn to love the little "podunk" airports that aren't too far out of town.

Some of my favorite airports:
Austin
Long Beach, CA
Milwaukee
Louisville, KY
Orange County, CA

Most hated:
O'Hare
Newark
JFK
LAX
Atlanta
Miami

See the point?

[SequSpur]

san antonio is po dunk. I can't wait to move.

[davi78239]

san antonio is po dunk. I can't wait to move.

And If I Were To Ever Get The Chance To Relocate, I'm Outa Here As Well.

[2Blonde]

I could care less about the size of our airport, my beef is with the piss ant TSA employees who are on a power trip. When my daughter and I flew out a a couple of weeks ago we got there at 0430 for an 0630 flight. When we got to the security line it was incredibly long. Then when we get near the front, a guy calls my daughter and I to separate lines. I told him we need to go through the same line because I'm the one with the travel documents. I also asked him about the special line for disabled people. He said there wasn't one. (The clerk at the check-in desk is who told me to go to this special line). Then not 3 seconds later another TSA agent sends a woman over to the "non-existent" special line for people with disabilities. We both had a cane but she was about 20 years older than I. WTF.

Well by then Mr.TSA Guy has his undies in a knot because my daughter and I are traveling under the same last name even though her passport has her father's last name. So I get out her medical insurance card, student ID, ATM card & credit card which all list her as (firstname) (dad's lastname)-(mom's lastname). He's still being a dick and informs me that since her ticket does match her passport that she can only get on the plane is she submitted to a complete search. "She's 16 fuckin' years old!!!!"

So I go on through security and watch her stand in a very tiny completely glass room for about 40 minutes. When they finally let her out they call her over to a search station. That's when I had had enough. I walked up there and at first they all looked at me like I was crazy as they began searching her. They told me to please step back. I said "gladly, but I have her ticket, boarding pass and identification". They wanted to know why I had it so I told them, "I'm her mother & she's only 16." They immediately stopped the search and said she should never have been sent to them to begin with. They told me I wasn't even required to have identification for her as long as she's a minor.

They wanted to know which TSA Guy pulled the power trip so I told them.

We got there 2 hours before our flight, and because of all the BS, we still almost missed our flight.

On the way back from NYC I handed them her ticket & boarding pass with no ID and stated she was a minor and they said no problem and waved us through. Also because of my cane they put me through a special lane so I didn't have to stand around for 30-45 minutes to get through the regular line. TOTAL DIFFERENCE!!