Simple message about fares easier to present; American says fight 'very winnable'

11:57 PM CDT on Thursday, July 28, 2005

By ERIC TORBENSON / The Dallas Morning News

American Airlines appears to be losing the public relations fight over the Wright amendment.

It sat on the sidelines too long, letting crosstown rival Southwest Airlines gain the upper hand in its effort to repeal the 25-year-old law restricting flights from Dallas Love Field, local public relations pros say.

With easy-to-understand messages of "lower fares" and "freedom to fly" backed by a sparkling corporate image, Southwest has won the backing of many North Texans and even some local lawmakers.

Publicly, American says the fight is still winnable. But sources close to the carrier say that it has junked its old playbook in favor of a more aggressive campaign as it tries to wrest momentum from Southwest.

It's about time, the public relations experts say.

While American has been talking up the economics of hub airports, Southwest has latched onto airfares. The result has been a much deeper emotional connection with residents and decision-makers.

"They're definitely winning," said Annabelle Baxter of Baxter Public Relations, who doesn't represent any of the parties in the fight but has closely watched the high-stakes battle unfold in the past 10 months. "Southwest has 30 years of positive history with people here, and it's like they can do no wrong."

Stan Levenson, chief executive officer of Levenson & Brinker Public Relations in Dallas, said he doesn't fault the execution of keep-Wright campaigns run by American and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

Their messages simply lack "any emotional appeal" because they're focused on what happens to institutions, not pocketbooks.

"In today's world of consumerism, emphasizing the benefits clearly will relate to people more effectively than just informing," Mr. Levenson said.

As the dominant airline at D/FW Airport, American has the most to lose if Southwest is allowed to make long-haul flights from Love Field.

American doesn't regret laying low in the initial months of the Wright battle last fall when Southwest announced its repeal campaign, according to Roger Frizzell, American's top corporate communications officer.

But "we certainly view this as a serious threat," he said.

Bills in the House and Senate would lift the limits that limit flights from Love Field to just seven states. If those bills become law, Southwest would be able to offer tough new competition for American's largest and most profitable hub.

Translating that competitive threat – and its effects on the regional air-traffic market – into a persuasive public presentation has been difficult.

"D/FW has a tougher story, and we're definitely the underdogs on the PR front," said Ken Capps, the airport's vice president of public affairs. "It's a complex issue that doesn't lend itself to accurate, short sound bites. But when folks really understand the facts, they get it."

At the core of American and D/FW's argument is American's belief that it would have no choice but to move flights to Love Field to combat Southwest if the Wright restrictions end.

Airline hubs, even ones as large as American's at D/FW, with 800-plus daily flights, can quickly lose their profitability when just a handful of flights are pulled out of the mix, the carrier's executives say.

Eventually, American's split operations between Love Field and D/FW couldn't support enough connecting passengers to make profitable service to some international cities as well as to smaller domestic cities, it argues.

Mr. Frizzell declined to discuss specifics of American's new strategy.

"Our belief is that this is very winnable," said Mr. Frizzell. "We are hearing from thousands of people around the country who support our position on Wright and who want to make their position known."

But some aspects of the new approach already have become visible.

American has begun visiting small cities served by its regional carrier, American Eagle, telling leaders they might lose service if Wright were lifted. Some civic leaders in those communities perceive the tactic as bullying. American insists the trips are informational.

In another piece of its new offensive, American's 80,000 employees will begin speaking up for their carrier. Southwest asked its 33,000 workers to spread the word about repeal earlier this year.

"We're literally having to hold back our employees who feel slighted by Southwest's rhetoric," Mr. Frizzell said. "They feel Southwest is trying to steal their livelihood."

American hopes to build enough grass-roots support to sway at least a minority of local elected officials. If it gets them in its camp, the thinking goes, repeal foes in Congress would have enough political cover to keep the status quo.

One of Southwest's advantages remains its upbeat, people-friendly corporate image, which helps it perpetuate an underdog aura even though it is the industry's strongest airline and flies more domestic passengers than American.

Among its most visible efforts in the airline-vs.-airline struggle has been its effort to collect signatures from passengers in favor of repeal.

Mr. Frizzell suggested that American's new approach wouldn't include a similar tactic. "We're hearing from customers that they are offended by Southwest's efforts on the plane," he said.

Southwest says it has not heard resistance from its customers on the petition issue. It says it has collected 100,000 signatures.

"Quite frankly, most of our customers ask what took so long to fight such an anti-competitive and goofy law – and how can they help," said Ed Stewart, Southwest spokesman. "To us, being offended is when you are a captive of high fares."

Southwest executives know they've got momentum but concede that the issue won't likely resolve itself this year, Mr. Stewart said. Southwest employees have been braced for potential defeats ahead, but the airline reiterates its long-term focus on repeal.

Industry consultant Mike Boyd of The Boyd Group takes a novel view of the tussle.

In a 52-page report on the Wright fight, he concludes that American should simply advocate for repeal and let Southwest grow "at an inferior airport" while matching fares from its superior position at D/FW.

"This is American's battle to lose," he said Thursday. "They can only lose it if they purposefully decide to split their operations. If they sit tight and do nothing, they're going to win."

E-mail etorbenson@dallasnews.com