Frontier Airlines planning to add 6 new routes from Cleveland

The recent downsizing of the Cleveland hub by United Airlines has come as a boon for low cost carrier Frontier Airlines. The airline has moved rather swiftly and is making efforts to seize upon the void created at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport by United.

Frontier Airlines announced it is looking forward to additional six new routes from Cleveland in June 2014. The airline’s move is aimed at developing Cleveland as yet another focus city. The airline has already been focusing on Trenton and creating as major hub since November 2012.

Travel experts say this is not something new for Frontier Airlines. The airline has made a strategy to gain foothold in all those markets that have become or are on verge of becoming victims due to a major consolidation done by U.S. carriers. 

United Airlines, towards the beginning of 2014, revealed its plans to reduce its Cleveland hub significantly. The airline will be reducing its everyday departures to 72 from the present 199 by June this year. The airline indicated that it is being forced to curtail operations in smaller areas only as they have largely remained unprofitable. According to United Airlines, it had become a great challenge to maintain Cleveland as a legacy Continental hub ever since the merger of Continental Airlines. A mega hub of United Airlines is already present at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, which is barely 274 miles from Cleveland.

Now that United Airlines has significantly downsized the service at Cleveland, immense opportunities have come to exist for other carriers, especially ultra low-cost, that have so far greatly benefited following the consolidation among larger U.S. carriers.

Delta Air Lines is yet another carrier which has decided to add some new routes from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport as well. Media reports said that even as airlines step in to fill the void created by United Airlines, the fact remains that the small markets would continue to be at a major loss as only few services introduced by these carriers are able to cater to the needs of the locals. The loss at the small markets is being perceived as paramount, which resulted because of legacy airline mergers.