1998

1998 brought a flurry of lawsuits and endless appeals, as well as the promise of new airline activity. and more passengers to Love Field. The nation was in the last two years of a dot-com boom and times were good for the airlines and the cities.

In Spring 1998, Continental Express announced new service from Dallas Love Field to Houston Intercontinental using 50 passenger Embraer ERJ-145 regional jets. The new service was set to begin June 11, 1998 with three new flights to Cleveland, Ohio to follow on July 1. Ft. Worth, American Airlines and the DFW Board filed an injunction to stop the Cleveland flights arguing that the out-of-state service would violate the spirit of the 30-year-old agreement between Dallas and Fort Worth to promote and protect D/FW Airport.

The Dallas Business Journal later reported that Continental hosted a press conference to publicly denounce American.

If you look at the history of American Airlines, they have written the book on anticompetitive practices," said David Siegel, president of Express, in what turned out to be just one of many venomous jabs at American.

"We'll spend whatever it takes," said Siegel, adding later that Continental has every chance of winning the battle, despite what he characterized as American's vast power and influence over local courts and politics. "We're on the side of right. Just because they're bigger and have deeper pockets doesn't mean they'll win."

AA dismissied Continental's comments, saying American was "too classy" an airline to respond.

August 31, 1998

Not knowing which way the courts would rule and wanting to acquire some gates at Love Field, American Airlines began service to Austin with 14 daily nonstops in addition to their existing 11 from DFW. American's lease on Braniff's old gates in the East Concourse called for the space to be used for offices only, so American was forced to share Continental's two gates.

December 22, 1998

The U.S. Department of Transportation ruled that Dallas cannot restrict Love Field service outside of the scope of the Wright/Shelby Amendment. North Texas' "Dynamic Duo" -- Ft. Worth and American Airlines -- turned around and sued the Department of Transportation in federal appeals court in New Orleans.

In an editorial the Dallas Business Journal gave one of its "special" Restraint of Trade Awards, reserved for folks who seem to take the prize when it comes to economic wrong-headedness - to

A Philadelphia Inquirer article noted that AA controlled 62 percent of the market at DFW in 1998. (It's up to 84% in late 2005)

The article also reported

Hub airports are especially tough places for a discount airline to get a foothold. For one thing, airport investment is typically geared to, and supported by, the dominant airline, leaving new entrants to scrounge for the few, if any, available gates.

Another factor is the convenience to travelers of nonstop flights to cities served by the hub carrier - and the lure of its frequent-flier program.

But federal officials say there is a third, more insidious reason that discounters can't make it at hub airports: because the dominant carriers will go to the wall, and beyond, to stop them.

The Transportation Department has been arguing with the major airlines since April 1998 over proposed rules that would define when an airline's competitive tactics turned predatory. Now, antitrust lawyers at the Justice Department are going to court against American Airlines, saying that, guidelines or not, its behavior was demonstrably illegal.

Meanwhile, the cities of Dallas and Fort Worth were continuing to argue about expanded flights at Love Field. By late May, 1999 the Dallas Morning News reported the argument had progressed to the point of Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk saying

Fort Worth Mayor Kenneth Barr is "very mistaken" if he thinks the legal feud between Dallas and Fort Worth over expanded flights at Love Field can be resolved by the two cities' managers

Furthermore, he said, the Dallas City Council is nearly united in its position not to negotiate with Fort Worth until it drops its lawsuit against Dallas.

"I have consistently ignored the demands of my council in an effort to try to get this resolved," Mr. Kirk said. "And if Mayor Barr thinks he is going to get a different response from the city manager, he is very mistaken. If Fort Worth is serious about getting this issue resolved, they are going to have to drop their lawsuit."

"Fort Worth has been haranguing us for 20 years to comply with the Wright amendment, but something in it that would be of benefit to Love Field, they want repealed," Mr. Kirk said.

"Mayor Barr is dealing in a play world. Congress doesn't pass something, then repeal it."

The article also made note of the fact that all the litigation between the two cities and the uncertainty of expanded flights at Love Field were hurting efforts to fund expansions at DFW

Walt Humann, the unofficial mediator between the two mayors, agreed with Mr. Kirk that the lawsuits have kept the airport from expanding.

"There is a cloud over our ability to sell bonds because of the lawsuit," he said.

"We are losing ground as a region because of this dispute. All of this litigation is counterproductive. We should be trying to work together as a region to regain our position and become the premier airport in the world.

Amen, but good luck trying to convince Fort Worth.