GizmoNC

AS of 1530 on 11.21.12 there was a bid for $5,000,000.00 for Bid B at LGA but nothing very high for Bid A or the DCA slots. I presume that FAA went home on 11/21/12 and will not most who the winner of the slots are at that time. I would think with WN wanting to get more into both airports they would be high bidders for a LGA package and the DCA slots. Look for an update on the LGA/DCA slots on Wed from the FAA.

gripen

Acoording to Bloomberg:

"The U.S. Transportation Department says airlines offered top bids totalling more than $100 million in an auction of flight slots at New York’s LaGuardia andWashington’s Reagan airports.
Federal officials didn’t immediately identify what airlines placed the winning bids. The largest bid on each of two bundles of slots at LaGuardia was more than $32 million, while a $40 million offer topped bids for one set at Reagan, according to postings on a DOT website. All bids have been posted, according to Bill Mosley, a department spokesman"

emj55

Looks like Jetblue and Westjet beat out SW.

JetBlue Said to Win Auction to Add LaGuardia, Washington Flights - Businessweek

Clear Right

According to Bloomberg JetBlue wins the bid at LGA and DCA. WestJet wins the other LGA slots. Very surprising, you would have thought SWA would have bid on both to attract the higher revenue business market??
JetBlue Said to Win LaGuardia, D.C. Flights - Bloomberg

Justdoinmyjob

Maybe they knew that the higher revenue business traveller doesn't want to fly at the time that these slots are for. You don't think that Delta gave up the prime time slots do you? From what I've heard, they are the very early, or very late off time slots. Basically, the worse time slots available. SWA management is very astute. I seriously doubt they got beat out. More like, jacked the price up like Crandall did to Allen over the Pan Am deal to bleed a competitor of vital cash.

Flyby1206

Pretty damn good time slots if you ask me, but then again nobody did ask me:

The slot sale bundles contain flowing slots timings.

DCA

Time / Frequency
0700 X67
0800 Daily
0800 Daily
0900 Daily
1000 Daily
1000 Daily
1100 Daily
1200 Daily
1300 Daily
1400 Daily
1600 Daily
1700 Daily
1800 Daily
1800 Daily
2000 X6
2100 X6


LGA bundle 1

Time / Frequency
0600 Departure X67
0630 Departure X67
0730 Arrival X67
0830 Departure X67
0830 Arrival X67
0930 Departure X67
1100 Arrival X67
1230 Departure X6
1300 Arrival X6
1400 Departure X6
1500 Arrival X6
1600 Departure X6
1700 Arrival X6
1830 Departure X6
2000 Arrival X6
2100 Arrival X6


LGA bundle 2

Time / Frequency
0630 Departure X67
0700 Departure X67
0800 Arrival X67
0930 Departure X67
1000 Arrival X67
1030 Departure X67
1230 Arrival X6
1330 Departure X6
1430 Arrival X6
1600 Departure X6
1630 Arrival X6
1730 Departure X6
1830 Arrival X6
1930 Departure X6
2030 Arrival X6
2130 Arrival X6

tsquare

Those businessmen want to fly on Sat and Sunday though...

Clear Right

Well somebody beat me to the time slot argument. And if you have been around this business for a while you would know there really are no bad time slots at LGA and DCA. I guarantee the early morning and late night LGA/DCA slots produce way more revenue than your standard SWA route. As far as bleeding a competitor dry of cash...really? 72 million for a company that has 1.2 Billion in free cash. SWA only has 3.6 Billion in free cash, and they are more than 3 times the size of JetBlue. On a percentage basis JetBlue has more free cash flow than SWA, so I don't see them getting "Bled" dry by this transaction. It will pay way more than 72 million in revenue over time.

Justdoinmyjob

Just passing on what I was told. These were the least revenue producing slots.

On another note, maybe SWA didn't have the gate space to efficiently utilize them. Just spitballing.

Whatever reason, I find it interesting that SWA employees would be questioning why their management failed to secure these slots after all the lectures about how GK and Co were the titans of airline management and could do no wrong. Obviously they were not needed by SWA, right? I mean, seriously, GK didn't get pwned, did he?

paxhauler85

What bothers the hell out of me is that a CANADIAN carrier was even involved in the initial bidding process. Those slots should go to any American carrier that wants them, and only then should the scraps be sold to Canadian carriers.

How much luck do you think American carriers would have at YVR, YYZ or Montreal if they were slot controlled airports?