The Middle Seat Terminal reports that Delta Air Lines, undisputed king of travel at Cincinnati, which is one of their hubs, has announced the cutting of fares from between 5 and 60% on both business and leisure tickets. The airport has long been, statistically, the most expensive airport in the country to fly out of.
But why did Delta decide to do this now? Delta has tried lowering fares before..including its Simplifares program of 2004. Delta’s hub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport offers more than 270 departures to more than 90 nonstop destinations, including flights to three trans-Atlantic destinations – London-Gatwick, Paris and Frankfurt. Simply, even with all that, Delta has finally discovered that their high prices are driving passengers to drive to alternate airports, such as competitor AirTran‘s service out of Dayton, OH.
Amidst rumors that Cincinnatti or nearby Northwest hub Memphis, or both will take a hit in the rounds of consolidation coming up as the two airlines integrate, Delta lowering fares could be seen as a message: Either they start filling planes there and cementing their business, or they start shuttering gates and downsizing.
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