ssides From United States of America, joined Feb 2001, 4059 posts, RR: 23 Posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 13 hours ago) and read 2415 times:
I'm looking to take a vacation in Panama later this summer, and was hoping to take AA's nonstop DFW-PTY flight. However, I discovered that the DFW-PTY leg only operates on Sunday evenings, and the return leg only operates Monday mornings (which is not at all convenient to my travel schedule).
What is the target market for this limited schedule? Are there cruises that operate on these days, or some other particular niche that it serves?
Just curious - I don't mind connecting through MIA, but I just thought this schedule was interesting.
LAXdude1023 From Lebanon, joined Sep 2006, 6779 posts, RR: 25 Reply 1, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 12 hours ago) and read 2323 times:
During the summer, its three weekly. Otherwise its weekly. I have no idea why they dont fly it at least 3x weekly year round.
Ive never understood AA in some cases. CCS-DFW carried some of the highest loads in all of their Latin American system last it was reported. Yet it only operates weekly. I guess the yields must be crap.
AA should fly DFW-PTY at least 3x weekly year round. Same with DFW-LIR.
DFW Fan Boy: Im crude, irreverent, and blunt, but Im not clueless. I offer no apologies.
IrishAyes From United States of America, joined Jan 2008, 1727 posts, RR: 5 Reply 2, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 10 hours ago) and read 2184 times:
Quoting LAXdude1023 (Reply 1): Ive never understood AA in some cases. CCS-DFW carried some of the highest loads in all of their Latin American system last it was reported. Yet it only operates weekly. I guess the yields must be crap.
I honestly don't understand AA sometimes, either. It appears that both GUA and BZE are served daily by AA, SJO is served daily, with one extra Saturday departure, and SAL is served 5X weekly alongside TACA's services.
Yet PTY, arguably one of the most important economic markets in Central/Latin America, is pretty under-served from DFW with such a meager schedule. IAH has four daily departures to PTY. Does it have to do with the ethnic demographics in North Texas that warrant such a low frequency, or does AA need time to allow the route to build up before they add more capacity on this route? Perhaps it has something to do with COPA having an extensive North American network that takes away connecting traffic from DFW?
MAH4546 From Sweden, joined Jan 2001, 31117 posts, RR: 74 Reply 3, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 10 hours ago) and read 2174 times:
Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 2): Does it have to do with the ethnic demographics in North Texas that warrant such a low frequency, or does AA need time to allow the route to build up before they add more capacity on this route?
Panama City is not an ethnic traffic market. Panama City is a business traffic market, and the business is going to the East Coast.
Quoting IrishAyes (Reply 2): IAH has four daily departures to PTY
IAH has two daily flights to Panama City, and IAH is CO's primary LatAm hub, so it makes sense.
2travel2know2 From Panama, joined Apr 2010, 1999 posts, RR: 1 Reply 4, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 10 hours ago) and read 2130 times:
DFW-PTY is kind of a MIA-PTY reliever. However, many Panamanian AAdvantage passngers will preffer PTY-DFW over PTY-MIA if flying to the West Coast and Mid West.
There's no longer a large US military customer base in PTY, so that traffic component for several U.S. - PTY routes is gone. IMHO, because that market there was a time in the 90's when AA could have flown RDU-PTY, at least once or twice weekly and not lose money.
About VFR, Panamanian ethnic market in Texas is minimal and travels mostly during Xmas holidays, some Texans do own property here or are frequent long-stay visitors, but those numbers are quite low and do make use of twice daily CO IAH-PTY.
The flight has such an odd schedule thanks to AA DFW based crew required rest time. AA could capture more traffic if the DFW-PTY and PTY-DFW were timed to match DFW Far East flights.
COflyerBOS From United States of America, joined Jun 2007, 289 posts, RR: 0 Reply 5, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 9 hours ago) and read 2108 times:
CO maintains twice daily service year round but often adds a third flight around heavy travel periods. This summer, CO is also using a 757-300 on the route as opposed to the normal 738/9s.
MaverickM11 From United States of America, joined Apr 2000, 15722 posts, RR: 47 Reply 6, posted (2 years 11 months 1 day 6 hours ago) and read 1939 times:
Quoting ssides (Thread starter): I discovered that the DFW-PTY leg only operates on Sunday evenings, and the return leg only operates Monday mornings (which is not at all convenient to my travel schedule).
I've never noticed that; I just assumed it was Saturday only. That makes no sense.
Quoting LAXdude1023 (Reply 1): . CCS-DFW carried some of the highest loads in all of their Latin American system last it was reported
Simon Bolivar himself couldn't rise from the dead and get more access to CCS if he wanted to
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