Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
Sea-Tac and partners take it to the top
Seattle is now on the route maps of 10 air carriers from outside the Americas – a lasting legacy for the the airport’s managing director Mark Reis as he steps away from the helm. Richard Maslen reports.
W
hen Mark Reis, managing director, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
(Sea-Tac), turned out the lights in his Port of Seattle office in February, it marked the end of a 27-year career at the Port of Seattle, the last 18 of which were spent at Sea-Tac. During this time, the west coast US airport has been transformed into the newest US major hub – and not just a competitive domestic facility but a growing international gateway too. In 2014, it was the fastest-growing major airport in the US, handling 37 million passengers, boosting traffic 7.7% and positioning it as the 13th-busiest passenger airport in the nation. It is expected that 2015 figures will exceed that growth with a 13% increase in traffic. Over his 11-year tenure as managing director, Reis has seen big changes in Sea-Tac’s demographic within the US aviation system with over a dozen new international air services introduced in this period, versus only a small number in the preceding years.
“Seattle’s biggest companies have become more globalised and focused on new international opportunities,” he says. “So the demand for international
Mark Reis has transformed Sea-Tac
connections has really ballooned. This has really influenced our air service development strategy.”
Delta hub
Seattle is now on the route maps of 10 air carriers from outside the Americas, including brands like All Nippon Airways, Condor, Emirates, Hainan Airlines, Icelandair, Lufthansa and Korean Air, which have added to longstanding routes from Asiana Airlines, British Airways and EVA Air. North American traffic at Sea-Tac has grown by just under a third over the past decade, but intercontinental traffic has more than doubled in that period. Alongside the new foreign arrivals, this has also been driven by growth from US carrier Delta Air Lines as it has moved away from a partnership arrangement with Alaska Airlines to develop its own hub operation at the airport. While other US majors have been closing hubs across the nation, Delta has
in effect made Sea-Tac the gateway for its flights into Asia, supplementing Tokyo Narita. The carrier needed a hub on the US west coast after its merger with Northwest Airlines, and Sea-Tac’s location means it can offer shorter flight times for connecting passengers to Asia. To support its long-haul network across the Pacific from Seattle, Delta has been growing its domestic activity at Sea-Tac to provide additional feed for the intercontinental services. Historically, these services had been provided by Alaska Airlines, the largest operator at Sea-Tac, but Delta is now seeing the value of flying into Sea-Tac on its own equipment. Over the past two years, Alaska Airlines has grown its Sea-Tac network capacity 19.8%, while Delta has almost doubled its offering with growth of 96.5%.
“We have seen a shift with these two carriers that has brought great benefits for Sea-Tac and our community,” Reis notes. “Delta’s growth has brought enhanced network connectivity, while Alaska Airlines has become a stronger competitor in the process.”
About 40 new Delta markets have been added at Sea-Tac since 2013, including three new destinations: Hong Kong, Jackson Hole and Shanghai. This has seen its peak day departures rise from just 38 in August 2012 to 129 in August 2015 and an expected further rise to around 148 in August 2016, based on published schedules.
routesonline.com
Routes News 1, 2016
29
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44