NC Airports

[orulz]

I was watching News 14 Carolina this evening, and they showed the results of some study about the cost of flying from the 85 busiest airports in the country.

CLT was 9th most expensive; PTI was tied for 10th. Raleigh, on the other hand, was 84th - meaning that it's the 2nd cheapest major airport in the COUNTRY. Of course there's going to be a major shakedown among the airlines in the near future so things are going to change big time. But for the time being, everyone in the Triangle say "Thank you, Southwest!"

[DigitalSky]

hot dang, 9th and 10th vs 84th. interesting

[Jerseyman4]

In the mid 1990s, i remember my parents going to PTI airport at one time when it was cheaper to fly there than going to RDU. Back then, it took foreevvveeerrr to get there because of the US 220 freeway not completed in northern Montgomery/southern Randolph and I-40 being 4 lanes back then (remember that!?!). Then once PTI became more expensive, we switched back to RDU again which by then, the super two US 1 freeway between Sanford and Cary was upgraded to 4 lanes. THANK GOD!!!!!!!!

[peaceloveunderstanding]

9 most expensive? I hate to be the other eight! It is quite expensive to fly out Charlotte, but I don't fly much anyway...

[AnEverydayJo]

I wonder if PTI's cost was before Independence Air came in? I've never flown with them, but their flights seem dirt cheap.

I've always used PTI for the convenience. I guess I need to look into flights from RDU...I've never flown from there.

It's strange that you can get a cheaper flight out of PTI with a connection in CLT, than you can leaving directly from CLT...and without the drive. But in reality, considering the time it takes to load, wait for clearance, the actual flight, taxing into the terminal, you can drive from CLT to Winston (not during peak hours of course) with time to spare. I've been stuck on Billy Graham Pkwy (i think thats the name) for over 2 hours before.

[monsoon]

It''s not so strange but rather price gouging by USAir. Personally I hope the airline fails, but it seems the government is interested in provided enough taxpayer money to keep this poorly managed airline in operation.

[AnEverydayJo]

You're (monsoon) right, it is price gouging. Strange was a bad choice of words...crazy is more like it. But I don't think I would go as far as saying I'd want US Air to crumble....considering the number of people it employs in CLT and Winston-Salem.

Also not trying to get off topic, but I don't understand people's obsession with Southwest, I've heard so many horror stories like seats being repaired with duct tope, arriving late and not being able to make the flight b/c it was overbooked...I'll happily pay a little more for better service and honestly I like picking the location of my seat : ).

[gs3]

Southwest (Southworst) is awful! I fly them one time and never again....candy and gum all in the floor of the plane, made a nice mess on my shoes....cramped....the rush of people to board and grab aisle or window seats.....just awful. Who cares how cheap the fare is....I pay more and at least get a clean plane in return.

[Miesian Corners]

It''s not so strange but rather price gouging by USAir.  Personally I hope the airline fails, but it seems the government is interested in provided enough taxpayer money to keep this poorly managed airline in operation.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Nothing like having the city's 4th biggest employer go bust. I'd love to see what that would do to our housing market (especially Lake Norman where all the pilots live), the unemployment rate, the screeching halt of commerce (US carries LOTS of freight), and the joy of connecting through Atlanta to go anywhere.

If US fails, we're left with a huge terminal designed for a hub and spoke airline. Southwest would probably come in and give us non-stop flights to exciting desinations like Birmingham, Baltimore, Providence and Philadelphia. Lufthansa would be gone (no Star connectivity), no flights to Europe, Latin America or the Carribbean. In a nutshell, we'd be flying to all the other hubs: Atlanta, Denver, Chicago, Houston, Newark and Cincinatti.

Most people are unaware of the fact that no other city of its size in the world has as much service to as many destinations as little Charlotte, NC. That's quite a coup. San Antonio is the 10th biggest city in the US and has no service to Europe. We have three non-stops daily. Charlotte is second in flights to Latin America and the Carribbean; Miami is first.

Carefull what you wish for. I have friends at US and know how hard they work. I don't want to see anyone lose their jobs.

[malvern]

....the rush of people to board and grab aisle or window seats.....just awful. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It's not as bad as you make it. You are divided into A, B & C groups before boarding, so it's not like everyone on board is rushing on at once. Although people in the same groups act that way. Whatever as long as I save some good money, I don't mind the hassle.