Following on this post from last week regarding this year’s compromise over the dubious Wright Amendment, this Fort Worth Star-Telegram article reports that American Airlines will move some of its planes to Love Field to compete with Southwest Airlines’ new flights to St. Louis and Kansas City. Those are the two new interstate destinations that can now be flown to out of Love Field as a result of this year’s modification of the Wright Amendment.
According to the article, American rationalizes the move by noting that many of its best customers in Dallas prefer Loveís closer-in location. But how many of those Highland Park-types are going to be going to Kansas City and St. Louis? I could understand American’s move if Love Field had been opened up to fly into New York or Los Angeles, but not St. Louis and Kansas City. This appears to be a money-losing move for the indirect purpose of keeping the Wright Amendment in place and, from my vantage point, that is the type of decision that has had American tailing Southwest financially over the past several years.
Update: Virginia Postrel, who has written extensively on the folly of the Wright Amendment, weighs in here.