Existing comment:
The Hub-and-Spoke System
Deregulation lifted restrictions on where airlines could fly. To increase their efficiency, airlines adopted the hub-and-spoke system-using a few major airports as central connecting points.
This strategy maximized aircraft use, increased passenger loads, and kept more aircraft flying. But it also increased airport and air traffic congestion and eliminated many convenient nonstop flights. And if one airline dominated a hub, the lack of competition often led to higher fares.
Hub and Spokes:
A "hub" is a central airport with flights [sic] paths radiating from it like spokes on a bicycle wheel. In a hub-and-spoke airline system, most flights connect through a few hub airports. How might a backup at one hub affect travelers all over the country? |