allthingsplanes

I'm really excited about all of this. My family has had season passes at Carowinds for the past 3 years. We've got two young children and the Peanuts kids area is great. I do agree though that the concessions need an upgrade (not just facilities but especially management), and that the north side needs to be modernized. A huge coaster will really boost the park's popularity, based on what The Intimidator did for it. On another note - the Windseeker was probably the biggest bust. It's never busy and it's not a very good ride. Let alone that it's "broken" several times.

^ I hear you but there's actually a pretty distinct difference between CLT and Reagan National. Reagan is slot-controlled, so airlines have to apply for additional slots to be able to fly to new cities or add flights to current cities. Charlotte is not controlled - any airline could come in if they wanted and start flights. Charlotte is one of many hub airports that are dominated by one carrier - DFW, Houston, Miami, Detroit, MSP, Newark, Washington Dulles are up there, and other hubs such as Atlanta, Phoenix, Denver, San Francisco aren't that much different. But I don't believe that the DOJ is locked in on Reagan. I do think that they want the combined airline to give up a bunch of slots there, but I do believe that the DOJ "changed" (that's up for dispute) their criteria and are looking more closely at connecting traffic as well as non-stops.

As someone who's has no real knowledge of railroads and how they operate, but believes strongly in the need for the city to grow our transportation infrastructure, I am really angry at the railroads around here. First, NS pretty much blocks the Red Line from happening, and now this. I know there are so many more things at play, but it just seems like the railroads won't play ball. I know this situation isn't strictly the fault of the railroads, but it doesn't seem like they're helping. I just hope there can be some big breakthrough on these projects.

^ As I understand things: This is only one flight (I believe a slot pair is for the roundtrip). And US only has 1 flight currently on that route. Once the merger happens, the 2 BA flights essentially just add into the AA mix, since there's revenue sharing. The question would be whether they keep those two as BA strictly, or switch one to AA? I'm not sure whether they can dictate which exact slot is given up, or whether it's just giving up a slot pair. AA could drop a flight from somewhere else in order to keep the same level of service on that route, if that's what they want. If no one else is interested in flying this route, it might come back to AA anyway (which I think is fairly likely). Ultimately, I don't believe there's any way that they'll drop much if any service in Philadelphia, and that in the end AA and BA will fly at least 3 flights on that route.

I'll say it again - I don't understand the people who are adamantly against the toll lanes. They would still have 2 "free" lanes on which to drive, and that's even if they don't carpool. So would they rather NO additional lanes instead of 2 toll lanes?

This is disgusting: "Unfortunately, they reacted like angry and spoiled children instead of business people running a multi-billion dollar operation," said State Senator Bob Rucho. - WCNC Seriously - this is who we have in Raleigh!

I find 2 things about this situation really strange: 1) That some Democrats have voted for it. 2) That the biggest backers of the bill are residents of communities within Mecklenburg County. It seems like this bill snubs Meck County almost as much as it does the City itself. Anyone have any insight into why this is the case?

^ I agree with this. I don't see any way that Charlotte or Philly get downgraded substantially. I thought that in the GAO report they kind of threw those statements in without any analysis to back it up. Essentially, it was an alarmist statement trying to say that if the merger goes through a bunch of people will lose their jobs. I do believe we'll lose some flights, but it will be in the range of 50-100.

^ That wasn't the point of my statement. I have no (none, zero) doubts that Charlotte will not suffer the fate of St. Louis. I was just responding to the question about why maintaining a large hub is important. The real question people have for this merger is how Charlotte and Miami will coexist. What they seem to overlook is the actual distance between Charlotte and Miami, and how Miami could never replicate the role that Charlotte serves in the southeast network (same for DFW). You're right though that one reason Charlotte will be very important for American is to compete with Atlanta.

There seem to be a few thoughtful people who are in the know - they clearly work in the airline industry and don't just take sides. I try to pay attention to those opinions. While Charlotte is not the size of Atlanta, we do have a greater population and business presence than many people give us credit for. Just look at cities like St. Louis and Pittsburgh to see what happens when an airline drops their hub. Granted, there are completely different dynamics in those regions nowadays, but our large hub is one of the things that has pushed Charlotte well past cities like Nashville, Raleigh, and now Memphis. The airport does also make money from each plane, though that doesn't directly come back to the city.

I can't believe the strongly mixed opinions on that same forum (I assume this is from a.net) about the direction of Charlotte after the merger. It ranges from Charlotte will drastically downsize (though that's the minority opinion) to Charlotte will grow (again a minority). Fortunately, most people (some of whom seem to know what they're talking about) believe Charlotte will stay roughly the same size. But there's also significant differences of opinion as to whether we'll keep Lufthansa and the Brazil flights.

I agree. I don't see Qatar here for a VERY long time, if ever. Even with the OneWorld connection, they're still more likely to enter several other US markets than Charlotte. Don't underestimate the amount of money that flows directly from Houston to the Gulf region - thus those airlines. I also tend to agree with this and hope it's the case. I don't think BA will fly here with one of their 787s - they don't have enough right now to start on this route. Hopefully we'll see a 747 here in Charlotte!

It's my understanding that the merger is slated to be finalized sometime around September. But once that happens they will still operate as 2 entities for another year or 18 months, with changes happening throughout that time. e.g. Moving gates to be side by side, moving planes around, combining frequent flier plans, US joining OneWorld. I would be surprised if many routes were dropped / changed in that time frame. Furthermore, I believe they wouldn't make any changes until the next "schedule" comes out. So if you've already been able to book a flight, then I would think it's safe (imho)...

Thanks. I still don't understand people up here. Those lanes will be optional, and it's not like there will be fewer free lanes. Considering there will be many people who drive in the HOT lanes, there will be that many fewer cars in the regular lanes.

Speaking of HOT lanes - correct me if I'm wrong but my understanding of those is that if you have 2 or more people in the car it's free, but if you're by yourself you have the option of paying to use the lane. Is that right? If so, then I'm frustrated by a lot of the people up in North Charlotte (Huntersville, Davidson, Mooresville, etc.) that are mounting an effort against the HOT lanes up here. In my mind, having 2 additional lanes, even if some people pay for them (that have the option) is better than nothing.

I drive through the ones in Davidson every day and almost every day I see someone do something wrong at the roundabouts. I don't mind them, but people who aren't used to them can't handle them very well.

Isn't it interesting the difference in reaction between mayors and county board/commissions? I think Mayors can much better understand the idea of city loosing control of something within city limits.

While I think the money issues are very important, the thing about this situation that stinks the most is the fact that while this airport is located within Mecklenburg County and the city of Charlotte, those two entities will seemingly have the least amount of influence on the authority. That would be like saying that only people from other cities / counties could sit on a school board.

I don't see Spirit coming here anytime soon - they tend to stick to major vacation areas or small airports near large cities. Allegiant is the same. Virgin is really struggling to expand and is sticking to major markets on the west coast and the northeast. I doubt they'll be here ever, unless they suddenly become much more successful. A lot of people think Alaska should come, and I think that might happen sometime in the next few years. I'm not sure what direction Frontier is going to take - they look like they're trying to expand in the east.

I was thinking that UA would start Denver-Charlotte once they can't rely on US service. I'm not sure about Nashville - it's too short for Southwest. That's why I think they've dropped Atlanta. That's why I was thinking this route might be tried. No direct competition.

What do you think could come on board next? The ones I could maybe see are Kansas City (though they've been downsizing there), Denver (but that's up against both US/AA and UA), Las Vegas, and maybe Tampa or Fort Lauderdale. Maybe St. Louis.

^ I thought the same thing about Atlanta originally. But,it's my understanding that given Southwest's route network compared with Air Tran, Southwest doesn't want to compete against US and Delta on a short route like Atlanta. It's not relying on connections on the Atlanta end, but is instead focused on less competitive routes.

I agree that it's so infuriating! I moved here 5 years ago and in that time Charlotte Douglas has proven itself to be one of the best managed and forward-thinking airports in the country. I get that Jerry Orr is going to be retiring and that "could" change. So I'm not totally against an authority. However, I am totally against an authority that's dominated by people who don't live in / represent the city / county in which the airport is located. This is Charlotte Douglas Airport - not Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord MSA Airport.

Does anyone know what's going on with the new highway lights that are being installed at the junction of 485 and I-77 up north? More specifically the space between 77 and Hwy 115 (Old Statesville). That project has been dragging on forever, and that area remains really dark at night.

While I would love to have MLB close by, I personally can't wait for the new ballpark to open. I live in North Charlotte and have very rarely driven down to Fort Mill for a game. It wasn't really worth it. But with the new stadium, background, etc. I'm really excited and hope to go to several games each season. Maybe if Charlotte can demonstrate that we can support baseball, then we could seriously be considered for MLB down the road.