Southwest is Ditching Newark Airport. Will Other Flights Cost More?
If you’re flying in and out New Jersey’s biggest airport, it won’t be on Southwest anymore.
But that doesn’t mean big changes are coming to Newark Liberty.
The Dallas-based airline announced Thursday it will consolidate its New York City-area operations at LaGuardia Airport as of Nov. 3. While losing an airline can stoke fears of price increases, there are too many factors at play know how the loss will affect your wallet.
“We have to understand that this is a dynamic situation. Airlines don’t commit to a destination forever,” said Dr. Ahmed Abdelghany, the associate dean for research at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s business school. “Airlines are looking at what is the situation at nearby airports as well.”
Because Newark is so close to other major hubs in New York like LaGuardia or John F. Kennedy International, airlines must compete not just with the operator a few gates down, but with others across the river. And losing about 15 midway flights daily to destinations like Chicago, St. Louis, Nashville, Phoenix, Denver and Austin, will likely have a minimal impact, Abdelghany said.
Southwest’s departure leaves 33 other airlines at Newark, several of which offer service to Southwest’s destinations.
Existing airlines at Newark may eye up the vacancies left by Southwest, but in crowded airports like EWR, that isn’t always the best move, Abdelghany said.
Southwest chairman and CEO Gary C. Kelley said in a statement “financial results at Newark have been below expectations, despite the efforts of our excellent team at Newark.”
For a cheaper airline like Southwest, large hubs like Newark can be unprofitable: Spending long times taxiing in makes it harder to turn around a high volume of flights. Discount airline WOW Air abruptly shutdown in March, leaving a sudden vacancy at Newark.
Southwest said the 125 Newark employees can apply to relocate to other airports with strong customer demand, like LaGuardia.
The decision comes amid construction of Terminal One, Newark Liberty’s $2.7 billion project transforming its oldest terminal into a sleek 1 million square-foot space with 33 gates and 3,000-vehicle parking garage. The Port Authority estimated the project will bring 23,000 jobs, $1.9 billion in wages and $4.6 million in economic activity.
The agency also has a $1.7 billion plan to extend the PATH train to the airport.
A Port Authority spokeswoman did not immediately provide comment on how Southwest’s departure impacts the project.
Amanda Hoover can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Get the latest updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.com’s newsletters.
———
©2019 NJ Advance Media Group, Edison, N.J.
Visit NJ Advance Media Group, Edison, N.J. at www.nj.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
