Allegiant Schedule Changes and the Future

Allegiant today started  operating the biweekly AAY420/421 with a mid-morning schedule. I then decided to play around with their booking engine to see how permanent the change was- and I found this:

Starting in November, Allegiant will have 3x weekly service to Pueblo! Also, this moves to a Monday-Wednesday-Friday instead of Sunday-Thusrday. This is big, and further indicates that the market is doing well. The simple fact is Puebloans LOVE to gamble.

Neither Schedule is optimal, from my perspective. Personally, I think the schule should be Something like this:

Sun/Wed: AAY420: Dept LAS @ 4:30 PM PDT Arr PUB @ 6:40-7:00 PM MDT
AAY421: Dept PUB @ 7:30 PM MDT Arr LAS 8:00 PM PDT

Fri:AAY420: Dept LAS @ 6:30 AM PDT Arr PUB @ 9:15-9:30
AAY421: Dept PUB @ 10:00 AM MDT Arr LAS 10:30 AM PDT

This Schedule would allow a three-day weekend where Friday afternoon and Sunday morning can be used. The Wednesday flight I might eliminate, but if people want to fly midweek, I would keep it open.

Puebloans also love to golf, with four golf courses in Pueblo and Pueblo West, plus several good courses in Colorado Springs. With Allegiant selling Phoenix/Mesa as a golf destination, I could see a flight to IWA.



Here's to the best thing to happen to the airport since the regular stream of diversions: Allegiant!

Happy Spotting!
Steve

FAA Reauthorization, Pueblo, and the future

The FAA has been faced with a partial shutdown, and with the Senate taking their August recess, it does not appear the problem will be solved anytime soon.

However- It could have been fixed with a vote in the senate to approve the House's version of the bill. However, one of the major sticking points was the fact that the bill cut $165 million from the EAS program.


This was not the only opposition to the bill by the democrats, but this bill hands the congress $165 million in spending cuts right after the showdown over the debt ceiling and the pledge to cut spending. While the EAS cuts are a drop in the bucket, they are a start.

Pueblo, Interestingly, is not cut with this bill. Let's take a moment to look at the Airport's service: 25 flights PUB-DEN a week, when the FAA only pays for twelve. Going above and beyond makes it look like the route is profitable- and doesn't need the subsidy.

Then, there is the gambling. People in Pueblo love to gamble.They flock to Cripple Creek for the weekend, and there have been charters for years. (As I write this there's one for today). Allegiant does regular charters to Wendover, NV as well as Bullhead City, NV. These charters must have done well enough that Allegiant started service to Las Vegas twice weekly. As a result, the Airport expects to double the number of passengers it served and has qualified for more federal funding (that won't be delivered because the Senate failed to pass the Reauthorization).

To me, it has become clear that Denver is not a useful route for Pueblo. I could see one or two airlines operating to bigger midwest hubs from pueblo, a seasonal route to Cancun or a Mexican LCC operating a small aircraft to Pueblo for the VFR market.  (The last two require customs at Pueblo, which more than likely won't happen unless an airline asks for it). However, if someone can't find what they're looking for at Pueblo, whether in terms of price or schedule or route, they do what thousands of Puebloans do every day: Drive to COS or DEN.


Finally, I'd like to post a link from Aunt Benet (actually a guest post) about the EAS Program and some possible reforms. Here's the link: GUEST POST: Fixing The Essential Air Service Program- Aviation Queen

Happy Spotting!

Steve

Happy Birthday Continental!

1935 Timetable (Björn Larsson's Collection)

On this day in 1934, Varney Speed Lines Operated their first service from Pueblo to Las Vegas, NM; Santa Fe, NM; Albuquerque, NM; ending in El Paso, TX. The airline flew the route for over 30 Years, adding and subtracting additional stops.

1961 Schedule. Pueblo is a stop on the Denver- El Paso Route.(Björn Larsson's Collection)

The airline was renamed Continental Airlines by Robert F. Six in 1937, the same Year Continental's Headquarters moved to Denver.

Lockheed Super Chief at Pueblo Airport, 1940 (Denver Public Library)

As Varney Speed Lines was one of the first airlines to operate out of Pueblo, the Airline has a history in Pueblo. Sadly, the airline stopped service in the 1960s and is the only service is an interline with Great Lakes on the Pueblo-Denver Route.

With the New airline, there are many opportunities opened. I'd love to see Colgan or Expressjet operate DEN-PUB. Then maybe, once in a while, the Continental name would return to it's place of birth.

Happy Birthday, Old Friend.


Steve

Air Canada 1039!

Today, we had our first round of daylight diversions. And among the (two) aircraft was C-FZUH, the Trans-Canada A319. By the time I got to the airport, It was pouring. Still, I captured this Beauty.

Enjoy!

Steve

Differences between Classics and NGs

Going through my archives, I found a couple of 737 diversion pictures. They were Southwest 737s. I ended up getting both -300s and -700s. Upon closer examination, I found some details that would help spotters determine whether the airplane is a classic or a NG.

1. Fleets: Obviously, If you see a Continental (United) 737, it's going to be a NG. If it's a US airways bird, it's going to be a classic.

2. Winglets: All 737 classics which have the 2 degree drooped flap can't have winglets. This is all of the B734s. if it's not stubby and has no winglets (and it isn't an oddball Air China bird), then it's a 737-400.

3. Static Ports: The 737NGs have a large unpainted plate, as N405WN demonstrates,

and N654SW lacks.

The best way to figure these out is the static port, if you're up close. If not, hope you know your fleets!

Happy Spotting (And Identification!)

Thoughts on EAS Service out of Pueblo

Yesterday, Great Lakes announced More service from DEN to PUB. Great Lakes operates DEN-PUB as Part of the Essential Air Service Program. I decided to do some digging about ZK's PUB EAS operations.

The DOT Docket has Great Lakes Subsidized for 12 flights at a cost of $1.3 Million.This money was based on an estimated loss of $1.21 Million. two question arise:

1:Why is Great Lakes increasing service to Pueblo when they expect to make a loss?

2: Does Great lakes need the subsidy if they are going to go to 2x the service in the subsidies?

Last Year, Allegiant started Service from Las Vegas to Pueblo. These flights were in addition to the many casino charters. (Yes, people in Pueblo love to gamble.) Taking a look at the DOT Passenger data, I found this:

 All flights.

 

Most of the Passengers Had Planned to Arrive in Pueblo.

 All Operations for 2010. A good portion of the flights are not subsidized.

Projected 2010 flights based on Allegiant year round operations.

So, It looks like that at Pueblo, The majority of passengers will be non-subsidized. This isn't a surprise, most People drive to either COS or DEN.

I honestly think PUB doesn't need EAS. Great Lakes flies some routes that are not EAS. If they think there is a market for PUB-DEN, then they'll fly it.

Welcome!

Welcome to Pueblo Spotting. I'll be posting some of my photos and updates from the area, as well as my opinion on some major aerospace news items.

If you're not already, be sure to follow me on twitter at @PUBspotter

Welcome to the blog!