American Airlines is the largest airline from Miami International Airport (MIA). The airline uses Floridian Airport as a key Latin American gateway with many long-term opportunities in South America and some services in Europe. However, in recent months, the two largest U.S. airlines, Delta and Southwest, have announced separate plans to add Miami to their route network. So, is the American Miami Center at risk? Simple Flying takes a look.
The Americans begin in a strong position
Data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) shows that, from January to December 2019, American Airlines recorded a 68.61% market share at the airport, with more than 14.8 million passengers. The next largest carrier is Delta, which has an 11.62% stake. Note that American’s market share excludes regional operations that help feed the airline’s Latin American and Caribbean gateways.
Combining regional carriers operating under the American Eagle brand, Mi, along with Alloy Air, a wholly-owned subsidiary of American Airlines Group, has more than 73% of the U.S. Healthcare market share, with a%. %% market share in Miami.
For reference, United Airlines had a 51% market share in Houston Intercontinental (IAH) before being counted among the regional carriers, and Delta had a 53.55% market share in Minneapolis / Cent. Paul (MSP) in the same period. Houston United’s largest southern U.S. Is the hub, while the Minneapolis is the third largest center of the Delta.
Delta and LATAM plan a “gateway hub”
In a filing with the Department of Transportation (DOT) for approval of a joint venture between Delta and Latam, seen by Simple Flying, Delta said it would significantly expand services from South America to Miami, supported by LTAM Feed. This key to South America service is a direct competitive challenge to American Airlines at the US gateway.
While Delta’s exclusive planned routes from Miami remain secret, the airline noted that it plans to add more than 20 domestic flights to Miami from its hub and 20 top corporate travel destinations around the US. So far, Delta has tasted its plan with flights from Miami to Tampa, Land Rlando, Raleigh and Celtic Lake City, with only the latter center.
Delta expects that, once the joint venture is fully implemented, it will increase its seating capacity in Miami by 33% compared to pre-crisis operations, which is associated with 57% more Delta flights in Miami.
Southwest Airlines is coming to Miami
This weekend, Southwest Airlines announced it would start flights to Miami. While specific routes will be named later, the Southwest has traditionally focused on point-to-point flights from Florida and benefited from some connections through its bases, such as Baltimore (BWI), Houston (HUU) and others.
While the Southwest is likely to launch routes from Miami to several different destinations using just a few gates, thanks to the airlines ’incredibly efficient turnarounds and boarding system, the airline will help reduce fares and increase competition on preferred routes. However, it will likely be a short stop for full development outside Mi Miami.
This is because Fort Lauderdale (FLL) already has a pretty significant base in the southwest, about 26 miles (about 42 km) north of MIA. Not as extensive as some of its other bases by Fort Lauderdale, providing non-stop service to 36 destinations from the Southwest FLL. Plus, Fort Lauderdale is a low-cost hub with Spirit and JetBlue competition near the Southwest at the airport.
Miami International Airport is a more expensive airport to operate than some others in the Southwest system and traditionally caters to more commercial passengers, thanks to the large number of foreign airports that fly to airports and American hubs. However in recent years, Frontier Airlines has also tried to enter the market.
Essentially, for the Southwest, Miami is not as big a market as it would be in Fort Lauderdale, not to mention the current operations of the Southwest outside of West Palm Beach (PBI). CEO Gary Kelly said existing services in the Southwest outside Miami FLL and PBI would “complement” and “grow”.
Yet, it looks like the American will probably retain its place in Mi Miami
Hub wars can be quite nasty. Some will remember Delta’s hub outside of Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW), which cut into the post-9/11 atmosphere as a hub. American Airlines won the war and continues to be the largest carrier at the airport with over 75% market share.
While the Southwest has shown some appetite for challenging airlines in its hubs, such as its operations from Atlanta (although most of them are inherited from a partnership with Airtran), Delta Air Lines has seen some of the most challenging existing airlines seen as similar. Seattle’s new building and growing market share from New York-JFK. However, with its biggest hub in less than two hours flying from Miami, Delta will likely be a local player, focusing on feeding LATAM’s South American network.
Since the current crisis has rejected travel demand, it is doubtful that any airline is trying to create a real, new hub for competition with American airlines. New centers require large investments and a lot of time and energy, which will be spent more on airlines rebuilding their existing operations in cities and markets where they already have significant share or name recognition. For now, American Airlines will probably keep Mi Miami all to itself and maintain a strong and enviable Latin American performance.
Do you think the American Miami Center is in danger? Let us know in the comments!
