SWA opts for B737-800s

[A Guy Called Tyketto]

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Bit of a followup to the story from a few months ago. SWA has
now made it official that they are converting their -700 deliveries to
the -800 series of the B737. This gives them a 4th variant of the
aircraft in their fleet, though they've indicated that they will start
to phase out some of their older models (read: -300 and -500). With
this, a couple of things come to mind.

Obviously, this puts validity to the rumours of them flying
internationally. They already will have gained the MMUN run as acquired
by purchasing TRS. But this this also brings in ETOPS compliance,
making TNCM, TXKF (Bermuda), and returning to light, Hawai'i. The HNL
run is shades of the past from ATA making the run. Perhaps a mimic of
AAS' runs from LAS-BUR-HNL, LAS-SNA-HNL, and LAS-OAK-HNL. They could
even make it from LAX, providing competition to UAL and AAL, which
already operate on that route.

another thing is that if they make the International runs, how
will that play into their standard operation of the 20-minute
turnaround, especially when you factor in Customs?

Plenty of time for speculation on this, as the aircraft won't
enter into their fleet until 2012.

BL.
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[Miles Bader]

Post by A Guy Called Tyketto
another thing is that if they make the International runs, how
will that play into their standard operation of the 20-minute
turnaround, especially when you factor in Customs?

Aren't SWA also famouns for somewhat, er, no-frills on-board services?

I wonder how well those will work out with people trapped in their seat
for many many hours rather than just one...

-Miles

[A Guy Called Tyketto]

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Post by Miles Bader

Post by A Guy Called Tyketto
another thing is that if they make the International runs, how
will that play into their standard operation of the 20-minute
turnaround, especially when you factor in Customs?

Aren't SWA also famouns for somewhat, er, no-frills on-board services?
I wonder how well those will work out with people trapped in their seat
for many many hours rather than just one...

In most cases, yes. But not as bad as RyanAir. They've taken it
more to the extreme, and took that moniker from SWA a while ago.

The B738s that SWA is getting is going to have the Sky
interior, similar to that of the B787. In addition, they are also
installing WiFi on every aircraft, so some perks are coming to them.
TRS already had that started up on their B738s and B712s. SWA had
tested it out before, but are going full on with it.

But when you think about it, any run from the West coast to
Hawaii is around the time equivalent of an ALB-LAS run, which they
already do nonstop. The MMUN run would probably be either from HOU or
ATL, which puts it at 2 - 3 hours, give/take a timezone. That's normal
for them.

BL.
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Brad Littlejohn | Email: ***@sbcglobal.net
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[JF Mezei]

How does the 737s do on an LAX-NYC run ? Does purchase of the -800 help
with range/capacity ? Or is that easily accomplished with -700/-600s ?


With regards to the 20 minute turn around, I an sure WN can make
exceptions for intl flights should it decide to run them. It would be
easier if they few to places that have USA pre-clearance, so that when
the planes land in USA, they are treated as domestic and can do quick
turn arounds. (with the longer ones at the other end)

In terms of service levels, is WN really that different now from other
USA carriers for coach service ?

Would be interesting to see if for flights of 5 hours or more, they
decided to serve cold meals. (or sell them on board).
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[matt weber]

On Fri, 17 Dec 2010 04:07:39 -0500, JF Mezei

Post by JF Mezei
How does the 737s do on an LAX-NYC run ? Does purchase of the -800 help
with range/capacity ? Or is that easily accomplished with -700/-600s ?

The answer is not as simple as it may seem. The 737-700 is certainly
quite capable of flying the NYC-LAX mission if you buy enough MGTOW.
It is unlikely that WN's -700's are capable of the mission. Boeing
(and Airbus) charge for MGTOW, and if you aren't planning on any
missions that require it, there is no reason to pay for it. WN
737-300's were bought with substantially less than the maximum
available MGTOW for just that reason. While the 'upgrade' in MGTOW
these days is just flight management system software, you still get to
write large check.

In addition, many airports charge landing fees and some countries
charge registration and navigation fees, based upon MGTOW. So if you
don't need the maximum, there are real financial incentives not to buy
MGTOW that you have no plans to use.

In order to fly the Hawaii missions, WN will probably need to buy the
-800's with something close to the maximum available MGTOW.

Post by JF Mezei
With regards to the 20 minute turn around, I an sure WN can make
exceptions for intl flights should it decide to run them. It would be
easier if they few to places that have USA pre-clearance, so that when
the planes land in USA, they are treated as domestic and can do quick
turn arounds. (with the longer ones at the other end)
In terms of service levels, is WN really that different now from other
USA carriers for coach service ?
Would be interesting to see if for flights of 5 hours or more, they
decided to serve cold meals. (or sell them on board).

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