Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport

[ThrashATL]

Originally Posted by LoveAtlanta

i heard airtrain is bad and that they have old plains. is that true? i been only once on it NYC to houston and plane was old from 70's

You've flown on AirTran twice and yet you hear it's bad? What was your opinion? Every airline has some old planes, I can't count how many dingy old soot boxes I've flown on with Northwest or United. I've flown with AirTran probably 9 times in 3 years and each time it was on a new 717.

[mayhem]

Continental and American are the worst. Every plane I've been on is old. The international Continental flights don't have fans.

I prefer to fly Airtran because they're almost always on time. The planes are always new and it's real easy to get checked in at Hartsfield with the kiosks right off of Marta.

As much as I would love to rep Delta, almost every flight I've been on has been delayed.

[Atlriser]

I fly Airtran whenever they go where I need without exception. They have an all new fleet and the service has always been far above Delta's in my opinion. I usually buy coach seats and get to upgrade when I arrive at the airport to first class. Either class though I've always received good service and I've never been late with Airtran except to LaGuardia....go figure. I don't know where you heard they have old planes because that's simply not at all true.

[STrek777]

Originally Posted by Atlriser

I fly Airtran whenever they go where I need without exception. They have an all new fleet and the service has always been far above Delta's in my opinion. I usually buy coach seats and get to upgrade when I arrive at the airport to first class. Either class though I've always received good service and I've never been late with Airtran except to LaGuardia....go figure. I don't know where you heard they have old planes because that's simply not at all true.

The only great thing about having AirTran in ATL is that they really help keep Jet Blue and Southwest from staking hold. I don't like AirTran at all but I do appreciate that they scare off the other LCCs.

Delta does a very good job of keeping AA, UA, NW, and CO in their place here. If AirTran is relatively the only competition that we have to concern ourselves with then I'll be ok.

[akiatl261]

I totally agree with you. When Atl was threatened by JetBlue, Combined Delta and Airtran drove them off, plus who would fly an abyssimal red eye to and from the west coast when you could fly anytime during the day with Delta.
In terms of old planes and legacy carriers many have older jet because 1. they still serve well 2. They do not have the deep deep pockets like Singapore, Emirates, Ethiad and others who can buy new planes every 2 years or so, and 3. Many of these older jets have been taking on new lives flying to further places and finally being used to there potential. I.E instead of flying a 767-300er to Vegas from ATL they are being redispatched to say Budapest or Lagos. Making better use of there ER designation(extended range).

[Trae]

Originally Posted by mayhem

Continental and American are the worst. Every plane I've been on is old. The international Continental flights don't have fans.

I prefer to fly Airtran because they're almost always on time. The planes are always new and it's real easy to get checked in at Hartsfield with the kiosks right off of Marta.

As much as I would love to rep Delta, almost every flight I've been on has been delayed.

Explain those awards won by Continental, including last year's "Most Admired Airline"?

[jmcgoblue]

Originally Posted by STrek777

The only great thing about having AirTran in ATL is that they really help keep Jet Blue and Southwest from staking hold. I don't like AirTran at all but I do appreciate that they scare off the other LCCs.

Delta does a very good job of keeping AA, UA, NW, and CO in their place here. If AirTran is relatively the only competition that we have to concern ourselves with then I'll be ok.

While I understand your feelings about the benefits of keeping competition away from ATL (As an AT&T employee I'm quite happy that we are the exclusive US carrier of the iPhone for the next 5 years), I would be willing to bet that Atlantans overall do not benefit from the situation. I wish the best for Delta, but I'd rather not subsidize their success through paying higher fares due to a lack of competition in their main hub.

[akiatl261]

Originally Posted by Trae

Explain those awards won by Continental, including last year's "Most Admired Airline"?

I think he was meaning that they dont have personal controlled fans above the seat, its a central cooling system. So it could potentially make the flight uncomfortable.

[Cosmoboy]

Originally Posted by LoveAtlanta

i heard airtrain is bad and that they have old plains. is that true? i been only once on it NYC to houston and plane was old from 70's

Noooo AirTran is far superior to any of the older airlines. I fly them whenever I can, and they're the only airline that I know of that has free XM Satellite Radio to listen to.

[Andrea]

I just wanted to say I really appreciate this thread. There are so many people with knowledge about the inner workings of the airlines and the airport that I haven't seen anywhere else.

[john3eblover]

Airtran really is a great airline, and the competition they give Delta is priceless.

[SteveD]

Absolutely. I travel constantly, and I'd say it's about 25 percent Airtran and about 75 percent Delta, for me. In all honesty I'd say the level of service is comparable between the two. The Airtran competition keeps Delta's fares reasonable for the markets which they both serve.

Case in point...I have a jobsite to visit in Elizabethtown KY early next week. I checked Delta's website for Louisville, closest major market,...$1,500!! So, then I'm forced to start checking nearby markets...Nashville (no Airtran, Delta outrageous again), Indianapolis, Dayton (Airtran competition...presto, fares 1/3 of that going into Louisville), so, I'm booked into Indy on Delta for $460 and I'll have to do the two hour drive down to Elizabethtown the night prior to get a full day's work in at Elizabethtown the next day.

Unfortunately this job is just a little too far to drive from Atlanta, about 400 miles. I'll do 250 or 300 miles, but after that I start looking for flights.

[Trae]

Originally Posted by akiatl261

I think he was meaning that they dont have personal controlled fans above the seat, its a central cooling system. So it could potentially make the flight uncomfortable.

Well, I have had my own controlled fans above my seats for Continental. Was probably a newer plane.

[Dragonheart8588]

Originally Posted by SteveD

Absolutely. I travel constantly, and I'd say it's about 25 percent Airtran and about 75 percent Delta, for me. In all honesty I'd say the level of service is comparable between the two. The Airtran competition keeps Delta's fares reasonable for the markets which they both serve.

Case in point...I have a jobsite to visit in Elizabethtown KY early next week. I checked Delta's website for Louisville, closest major market,...$1,500!! So, then I'm forced to start checking nearby markets...Nashville (no Airtran, Delta outrageous again), Indianapolis, Dayton (Airtran competition...presto, fares 1/3 of that going into Louisville), so, I'm booked into Indy on Delta for $460 and I'll have to do the two hour drive down to Elizabethtown the night prior to get a full day's work in at Elizabethtown the next day.

Unfortunately this job is just a little too far to drive from Atlanta, about 400 miles. I'll do 250 or 300 miles, but after that I start looking for flights.

If the existence of Airtran keeps Delta from ripping off its customers then lets bring Jetblue and Southwest to Atlanta. I'm a capitalist and I believe in competition because we need to keep some of these legacy airliners on their toes.

[Andrea]

Originally Posted by Dragonheart8588

I'm a capitalist and I believe in competition because we need to keep some of these legacy airliners on their toes.

I'm a capitalist as long as it's not driving me into poverty.

[Dragonheart8588]

Originally Posted by Andrea

I'm a capitalist as long as it's not driving me into poverty.

Are you an employee of Delta?

[john3eblover]

Originally Posted by Dragonheart8588

If the existence of Airtran keeps Delta from ripping off its customers then lets bring Jetblue and Southwest to Atlanta. I'm a capitalist and I believe in competition because we need to keep some of these legacy airliners on their toes.

The reason Jetblue and Southwest will never come to Atlanta is because Delta and Airtran are already so firmly entrenched here. They have the infrastructure and route system in place, as well as the gates to make it all work at ATL. It would be nearly impossible for Southwest or any other LCC to survive here. The competition would be so cutthroat. Southwest has traditionally stated very publicly that they will never enter the ATL market.

In case you have been in a coma for the last 10 years, the legacy carriers are already "on their toes". In fact most of them have been hemorrhaging money like crazy for many years and many reasons; 9/11, oil prices, and competition from LCCs. That is why companies like United, Delta and Northwest had to go into bankruptcy.

Competition is always a good thing I believe, and the competition at ATL is pretty intense, trust me.

[john3eblover]

and if you are just hell-bent on flying Southwest, you can always drive over to Birmingham and fly out there. I have known many people to do this

[ThrashATL]

Southwest is only cheap, the service is so so. Half the time I've been on their planes it was like a flying frat party. They are not all cotton candy and fluffy bunnies.

[Dragonheart8588]

Originally Posted by john3eblover

The reason Jetblue and Southwest will never come to Atlanta is because Delta and Airtran are already so firmly entrenched here. They have the infrastructure and route system in place, as well as the gates to make it all work at ATL. It would be nearly impossible for Southwest or any other LCC to survive here. The competition would be so cutthroat. Southwest has traditionally stated very publicly that they will never enter the ATL market.

In case you have been in a coma for the last 10 years, the legacy carriers are already "on their toes". In fact most of them have been hemorrhaging money like crazy for many years and many reasons; 9/11, oil prices, and competition from LCCs. That is why companies like United, Delta and Northwest had to go into bankruptcy.

Competition is always a good thing I believe, and the competition at ATL is pretty intense, trust me.

First of all, those legacy carriers haven't been "on their toes" that's is why they went through bankruptcy. These airlines operated through the good times and acted like they will never face competition and never have to face higher fuel cost (I will give them the benefit of the doubt for not predicting 9/11). They have a poor CFO with completely mediocre plans for their future and that's is why they were and continue to bleed money.

And NO, I haven't been in a coma. Unlike other Atl boosters, I refuse to support anything because they from "Atlanta." I support a company that provide GOOD products/services. If Delta was really on their toes then they would have able to plan for the higher cost and competition (And PLEASE do not tell me that they couldn't predict higher cost/competition) . It's call Finance 101.