Summary
- Four airlines fly between Phoenix, Arizona, and Denver, Colorado.
- American Airlines and Frontier Airlines have the least market share between the two cities.
- Southwest Airlines and United Airlines have a notable presence on the route.
While some airlines may be the exclusive operator on key routes from their respective hubs, the majority of domestic routes in the US are shared by several carriers. Between the Valley of the Sun and the Mile High City, around 60 flights operate per day across four airlines.
American Airlines is the largest carrier at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX), and Frontier Airlines is home to Denver International Airport (DEN). The airport is also a hub for United Airlines, while Southwest Airlines has a large presence in both Phoenix and Denver.
American has the least amount of market share
According to aviation data and analytics firm Cirum, there are 1,713 scheduled flights on the route this month – roughly 850 in each direction. Interestingly, the equipment is primarily split up by airline, with American and Frontier operating Airbus A320 family aircraft and Southwest and United deploying their Boeing 737 family jets.
American is handling the least number of flights, with only 156 flights scheduled. It accounts for about 9% of all flights between PHX and DEN. With 78 flights in each direction, data shows the A320 will handle the majority at 68 each way. It seats 150 passengers, resulting in a total of 20,400 seats offered. The larger A321 will operate 20 flights on the route this month with a total capacity of 3,800 seats. Between both aircraft, American is offering 24,200 seats out of the route’s total of nearly 290,000 seats.
Frontier & United
Frontier has nearly 100 more flights scheduled on the route. The ultra-low-cost carrier will operate 252 flights – 126 each way – and deploy every variant in its all-Airbus fleet: the A320ceo, A320neo, A321ceo, and A321neo. To suit its rapidly growing operation at PHX, the airline has not scheduled the flights equally across its planes.
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The A320neo, however, will handle more than half of the flights at 146. From DEN to PHX, it will operate 72 flights, while it is scheduled on 74 from PHX to DEN. The A321ceo will be deployed on 73 flights, operating 34 PHX-bound flights and 39 DEN-bound flights, while the A321neo will handle 32 flights: 20 from DEN to PHX and 12 in the return. Only one flight is scheduled on the A320ceo, which originates at PHX. Although it is one flight, it can accommodate 180 passengers in its high-density configuration – 30 more seats than American’s A320s. In total, Frontier will offer 51,806 seats on the route.
Photo: nyker | shutterstock
United is the second-largest airline on the route, with 462 total flights. Although the 737-800, -900/-900ER, and the MAX 9 will handle the overwhelming majority of flights, the Bombardier CRJ900 is also flying the route. The regional jet, operated by Mesa Airlines, is scheduled on 60 flights, 30 in each direction. In total, United will offer 73,567 seats between PHX and DEN this month.
Low-cost winner
While it may not be surprising, Southwest handles the most flights on the route, with over 840 scheduled this month. Unlike its US legacy competitors, the airline operates from a point-to-point system, which naturally allows for more flights on the route.
Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock
Additionally, the carrier has crew bases in both PHX and DEN. It will also deploy all variants in its fleet: the 737-700, -800, and MAX 8. Southwest’s operation accounts for nearly half of the market share, with 843 total flights and 139,973 seats on the route this month.
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With all four carriers, DEN is one of PHX’s most competitive markets. Other routes operated by four airlines include Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Portland. Five carriers offer flights from PHX to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle.
