My first trip to OKC on Express Jet

[Patrick]

We went to Los Angeles last fall and stayed at the Renaissance Hotel in the Hollywood and Highland complex. Wasn't really all that impressed with the hotel...rooms were just plain, and we paid around $300 a night for the room. It was close to everything, and right next to the Kodak theater, so that was nice. And you walk right outside and you're in the Hollywood and Highland shopping area. If we had it to do over again though, we probably would've stayed at the Roosevelt across the street. Also, like Pete says, parts of Hollywood are seedy. Really, the only nice part I saw was right around the Kodak Theater/Graumann's Chinese Theater area. The east side of Hollywood was seedy, although I'll admit the Pantages Theatre was nice.

jbrown, we went to Santa Monica Pier. It was just okay. I guess after going to Disneyland, I just wasn't all that impressed with Pacific Park, the amusement park. It's basically just a Faris Wheel, roller coaster, and a few other rides. We ate at Bubba Gump Shrimp Restaurant on the pier, and it was pretty good. I wouldn't spend over a few hours there. It is pretty neat to see all of that out on an old wooden pier though.

We spent over a week going all over LA.....Universal Studios, Disneyland/California Adventure Park, Santa Monica Pier, Beverly Hills-Rodeo Drive, Hollywood, we went to many of the studios (Sony, Paramount, Warner Brothers), etc.
I'd probably say I was most impressed with the Farmer's Market, and the adjoining Grove, an upscale shopping center.

My biggest gripe: traffic. It took forever to get anywhere. Traffic was always backed up on the interstates, and on all of the major roads in the Beverly Hills/Hollywood area. Took me an hour and a half to get from Santa Monica Pier to Disneyland.

I'd be glad to provide any input, jbrown.

[Patrick]

DON'T EAT AT BUBBA GUMP.

We ate there, and actually liked it. I got like 4 different kinds of shrimp, and all of them were pretty tasty.

[Bob&Frank&Ted&Bob&Alice]

I do wish there was a bit more head room for tall people, especially while seated. If I sit up straight, my head can ring the call button and turn the light on/off. The seats could also have some more padding, but compared to Canadair Regional Jets, I think the Embraer Jets compare favorably.

PS - If you ever get the chance to fly on the new Embraer 170, 175, 190, or 195, do it. These planes have raised the bar to what regional jets should be.[/QUOTE]

Duly noted! Will certainly remember this!
Really enjoyed hearing how your head can ring the call button
and turn the lights on and off. You must be very popular!

[chrisok]

I do wish there was a bit more head room for tall people, especially while seated. If I sit up straight, my head can ring the call button and turn the light on/off. The seats could also have some more padding, but compared to Canadair Regional Jets, I think the Embraer Jets compare favorably.

PS - If you ever get the chance to fly on the new Embraer 170, 175, 190, or 195, do it. These planes have raised the bar to what regional jets should be.

Duly noted! Will certainly remember this!
Really enjoyed hearing how your head can ring the call button
and turn the lights on and off. You must be very popular![/QUOTE]

There is no entertainment on those planes, so you have to take what you can get.

[Bob&Frank&Ted&Bob&Alice]

I'm sure there is a rule about answering right away, but I
thought I'd go out on a limb anyway.

Just wanted to thank Patrick for that great information and
I'll sure use it when I go to Beverly Hills!

[Bob&Frank&Ted&Bob&Alice]

Oh great.

I forgot to make some crack about does anybody know what
he does with his knees. Which is what I thought about at first
but then got back on track and decided not to. But then I changed
my mind.

Doesn't The Emperor's Club sound a little Chinesey?

[brianinok]

Looks like we are losing Express Jet in OKC and Tulsa:

ExpressJet to drop Okla. service | NewsOK.com

Thu May 22, 2008
ExpressJet to drop Okla. service


By Jennifer Palmer
Business Writer

Late this summer, ExpressJet Airlines will no longer fly in Oklahoma, the company announced this morning.

According to a press release, ExpressJet is decreasing its summer schedule by 30 percent as of Aug. 23. The company will continue to serve about 20 cities but Oklahoma City and Tulsa were not among them.

ExpressJet offers nonstop service from Will Rogers World Airport and Tulsa International Airport to Albuquerque, N.M., Los Angeles/Ontario, Calif., Sacramento, Calif., and San Diego.

The ExpressJet aircrafts do not have middle seats and come with free XM radio.

The Houston-based airline came to Oklahoma in April 2007. At the time, the company said they would give the Oklahoma market 12 to 18 months to catch on.

[venture]

Loads were low compared to the rest of the network, and they couldn't get the yeilds needed to pay for it.

People didn't use it...so they lost it. Congrats on failure OKC.

[Millie]

Loads were low compared to the rest of the network, and they couldn't get the yeilds needed to pay for it.

People didn't use it...so they lost it. Congrats on failure OKC.

How is it failure? They were selling a service that the market couldn't or didn't want to support. Is OKC failing every time a restaurant closes because people don't eat there? Every time a retail store closes? The airline made a decision based on the bottom line, just as they said they would do when they came here (I believe they said they were making a 18 month commitment, to see if things worked out).

I don't think that having direct flights to numerous cities is as much of a badge of honor as many here would like to believe- especially in the current economy. While a direct flight is convenient, and the regional jets are nice, if there's not a market for something, there's not a market for something. I really doubt it's the end of the world, or that there will even be much if any public perception fallout. Not having a direct flight to LA or Albuquerque isn't going to be a deal breaker for anything that I think the city should care about.

I work for a large company that is headquartered in Los Angeles. I don't travel for work, but some of my employees travel to LA and our company execs often travel here from LA... To the best of my knowledge, these people don't use the ExpressJet direct flights- as a company we use generally use SWA. We decided to locate a significant number of employees in OKC before the direct flights existed, and we will continue to operate here long after the direct flight is gone.

I just can't picture the CEO of some major company sitting behind his desk with a big map, scratching his head and saying "well, OKC is out since I can't get there without going through Phoenix first..."

[Oh GAWD the Smell!]

We ate there, and actually liked it. I got like 4 different kinds of shrimp, and all of them were pretty tasty.

It's not the food that made me say that. The food was good.

But the portions were small, the service sucked horribly both times I've been there (a couple of years apart), and they sold me a beer with a "free glass", but neglected to tell me that the beer was $14 instead of the $8 that was on the menu. How is THAT free? Oh, and to get the glass, I had to ask for a special receipt AFTER I'd paid...Then I had to take that receipt up to the gift shop to take possesion of the glass...Which was of horrible quality. The food was good, but the place still left a bad taste in my mouth.

*shrugs*

[shadow42]

Have also used expressjet service from san diego to okc and was impressed as well. I have already booked other flights returning to socal later in the summer after our move to Edmond. Very easy checking in at San Diego as they fly out of the commuter terminal.

[venture]

How is it failure? They were selling a service that the market couldn't or didn't want to support. Is OKC failing every time a restaurant closes because people don't eat there? Every time a retail store closes? The airline made a decision based on the bottom line, just as they said they would do when they came here (I believe they said they were making a 18 month commitment, to see if things worked out).

ExpressJet never said anything about an 18 month commitment...no airline in their right mind would. However, the routes performed fairly well early on and then people went back to Southwest and others. So yes, it was OKC turning their back on the product.

I don't think that having direct flights to numerous cities is as much of a badge of honor as many here would like to believe- especially in the current economy. While a direct flight is convenient, and the regional jets are nice, if there's not a market for something, there's not a market for something. I really doubt it's the end of the world, or that there will even be much if any public perception fallout. Not having a direct flight to LA or Albuquerque isn't going to be a deal breaker for anything that I think the city should care about.

Then I'm glad you aren't in economic development. The loss of a flight to Albuquerque is trivial. It's the loss of the flights to California/West Coast that are going to hurt. United does handle LAX right now from OKC, so that will help. Sacramento and San Diego though will be left without a nonstop, and they were amongst ExpressJet's strongest markets from OKC. If you want businesses to locate in your city, nonstops to major business centers is a must.

I work for a large company that is headquartered in Los Angeles. I don't travel for work, but some of my employees travel to LA and our company execs often travel here from LA... To the best of my knowledge, these people don't use the ExpressJet direct flights- as a company we use generally use SWA. We decided to locate a significant number of employees in OKC before the direct flights existed, and we will continue to operate here long after the direct flight is gone.

I just can't picture the CEO of some major company sitting behind his desk with a big map, scratching his head and saying "well, OKC is out since I can't get there without going through Phoenix first..."

Then you don't get out much in the business world. I have seen MANY business deals fold in cities, other than OKC, because of the lack of direct transportation from that city. Losing nonstop flights to major business centers is a big deal...smaller markets like ABQ, not a big deal.

[lpecan]

Have also used expressjet service from san diego to okc and was impressed as well. I have already booked other flights returning to socal later in the summer after our move to Edmond. Very easy checking in at San Diego as they fly out of the commuter terminal.

Flying out of SAN was awesome. The schedule was perfect. Leave after work on Friday, and come home late sunday Evening. And you could get the the SAN terminal like 20 mins before your flight. And I was only one flight away from a free one.

[rant] By the way, I blame this squarely on OKCites blind allegiance to Southwest. I can't tell you how many people here do not even consider another airline. Even when WN isn't the cheapest, which I think is a majority now, people somehow flock to it. I tried to convince a friend to try XJet to SAN, and he insisted that he doesn't trust anyone but SWA. I'm also now pissed that I have to deal with United (uck) and LAX (uck) to go to L.A.
[/rant]

And by the way, I still contend 9A on an ERJ is the best seat in aviation.

[ewoodard]

Venture79 look back in post #32 last line and you will see that XJet said they would give the OKC market 12-18 months to catch on. I don't fly for business or recreation so it really doesn't matter to me, but it seems as if they didn't think they would do well here anyway. Maybe they knew that SWA was the top choice here.

[venture]

Eh...they also signed a 4-5 year contract for gate and counter space at the airport. So take the comment how you will.

The annoying thing...KWTV is running the story focusing on their agreement as a Continental Express carrier...even though this is just the branded service that is stopping. They'll still run as CO Ex and Delta Connection.

Ipecan...totally agree the area's love for Southwest killed this. Even with the decent initial schedules to Austin and San Antonio...people still took Southwest with the stop in Dallas. Why? Who knows. People are retarded sometimes when it comes to airline choices. For me from OKC...I will almost always take Frontier. They have hands down the best product out of here and Denver isn't a bad airport to connect in. Even with Southwest trying to kill Frontier off...they are still holding their own.

[jbrown84]

People didn't use it...so they lost it. Congrats on failure OKC.

I used it. BOOOOOO!


I agree with venture. Non-stops to cities like LA and San Diego ARE extremely important in business, but also leisure travel. I went to LA in March on XJet and saved essentially an entire day by not having to spend 3-6 hours changing planes at DFW or somewhere else on the way out and the way back. AND it was cheaper. Bad news I say. Sounds like Millie's company is among those w/ blind allegiance to Southwest...

[flintysooner]

Express Jet failed. The plan may have been wrong. The execution may have been wrong. Regardless the company failed to meet its own goals and has given up.

Millie's company apparently is correct.

[adaniel]

Its very hard for airlines to operate in an environment with $130 oil. Just look at the problems American Airlines is going through. Flinty's right. They just weren't able to meet their goals as a company and had to cut their plans short. I don't get all the angst towards OKC.

I also don't get why everyone is on SWA's case. People must be "retarded" towards their airline choice? Really? Those are some strong words; I guess I must be retarded. I love SWA because they offer a good, cheap product with low fares and excellent customer service. I also admire them as a company because unlike most Fortune 500 companies, they don't treat their employees like crap, and its shows in the way they treat their customers. Blind allegiance? Absolutely not. Giving repeat business to a company that has yet to disappoint me or many people I know? Definitely. I'm not saying ExpressJet was a horrible company. But as a customer they offered me no reason to switch what I'm already used to. Ever heard the saying, "Why change a good thing?" Its true in this case. I don't know why everyone in this free market economy feels the need to jump down their throats just because they offer a good product and thus have built up a competitive advantage.

And for what its worth, I do think that adequate airline service is important when luring economic development. I would hope the OKC Chamber will lobby for more airline service as they have done in the past, many times with success.

[Millie]

Blind allegiance or not, if SWA works, it works.

After reading venture's response to my post, I asked somebody who is an economic development person here in the metro what he thought... the answer I got is that while airlines/routes are good, OKC has enough other things going for it (cost of living, housing market, etc.) that it shouldn't make that great of a difference in the grand scheme of things... Don't flame me for the opinion- I just asked and wanted to share the answer.

My thought is that it is sad that the business failed to thrive here, but I really doubt it is catastrophic that they're leaving. Maybe I missed the memo that it was my civic duty to fly west every few weeks to make sure that the route wouldn't leave, but... as with every other industry, it appears that the demand spoke for itself and the airline did the rational thing in leaving.

[chrisok]

And by the way, I still contend 9A on an ERJ is the best seat in aviation.

9A is tops on ERJ 135, but on the more common (at least in this market) ERJ 145 its 12A. Best coach set hands down.

[kevinpate]

I seldom fly. What makes these particular seats so special?

[lpecan]

Its an exit-row seat with good legroom and you sit by yourself (aisle to your right and window to your left) I honestly prefer it to the domestic F product on many airlines.

As far as SWA,I guess I've just had different experiences than everyone else. It has always seemed to be perpetually overbooked. And it drives me nuts how the won't tell you where and how many times you'll stop on the "direct" flights. And I hear the boarding system has gotten better, but still, who wants to stand in line to board for an hour before hand?

[Turanacus]

xJet didn't pull OKC service because of low volume, they pulled it because of "excessive competition" from other carriers and "very high fuel costs" -- I do believe they pulled service from Tulsa because of low demand. xJet as a whole will fold soon, my friends in San Antonio have all been laid off by xJet.

[jbrown84]

Blind allegiance or not, if SWA works, it works.

What I'm talking about is people that refuse to use XJet even when it's a direct flight and cheaper. I know people that are married to their favorite airlines this way.

[venture]

xJet didn't pull OKC service because of low volume, they pulled it because of "excessive competition" from other carriers and "very high fuel costs" -- I do believe they pulled service from Tulsa because of low demand. xJet as a whole will fold soon, my friends in San Antonio have all been laid off by xJet.

XJet is bigger than just this branded thing. Now if the contract with Continental goes down, yeah they are toast. But they'll sell to Skywest before that happens.