Hub And Spoke Model vs Point To Point Model: A Comparison
Most of the people using air travel may not be aware of the operating models airlines use. Traditionally airlines have been using hub and spoke model for their operations. However, since the advent of the 21st century and emergence of new low cost carriers and other private players, a new model has also emerged: the point to point model. What exactly is the difference between these two and how do they compare with each other? Let's find out.
Hub and Spoke Model
Hub and Spoke Model has been used by the airlines traditionally ever since advent of commercial airline travel. This model basically concentrates on a particular airport also known as the "base" airport or the "hub" airport and operates all its routes out of that hub airport. One great example of an airline using hub and spoke model is Emirates which has its hub at Dubai International Airport. It operates flights to all its destinations to and from Dubai and passengers usually connect to other flight taking them to their final destination. For e.g: A passenger wanting to travel from London To Mumbai on Emirates has to take one flight from London to Dubai, get off the plane and then transfer on a connecting flight taking him to his final destination , Mumbai.
As one can see, airlines using this model rely majorly on connecting traffic and most of their passengers rarely have the hub airport as their final destination.
Point to Point Model
This has been a much newer operating model which has been pioneered mostly by low cost carriers. In this model, the airline directly flies from one non-hub airport to another non-hub airport. This is especially beneficial for the passengers as they don't have to transit through a hub airport and can also save a few hours spent during the transit.
One point worth mentioning is that airlines using this model do have hub airports, however, they are spread across a particular region. For eg, Southwest Airlines has many hubs spread throughout the United States providing point to point connectivity to it's passengers.
Comparison
As one can see, both these models are completely different from one another. Hub and Spoke model has being followed by many legacy carriers such as British Airways, Lufthansa, Emirates and others, whereas Point to Point model is used mostly by low cost carriers such as Ryanair, Wizz Air and Southwest Airlines among others. Argument can be done in favour of point to point model as it saves a lot of time for the passengers which is usually spent transiting through hub airports. This time spent during transit also termed as "layover" can sometimes range from half an hour to four or five hours and sometimes even more.
In certain cases, the passengers even miss their connecting flight because their inbound flight is late for some reason leading to a great headache for the passengers.
It is also worth noting that odds are not completely against Hub and Spoke Model. This model has been and is still being used for decades because of its ease of use for the airlines. Suppose the case for British Airways which operates a London LHR - New York JFK flight. Instead of operating four different JFK flights from Manchester, London, Bristol and Birmingham, British Airways can just operate three short haul flights to London and then a single long-haul flight to New York JFK. This is is the easiest way an airline can operate that specific route unless the demand for the route justifies having a separate flight.
Conclusion
Both of these models have their own advantages and disadvantages. Point to point model is basically more suited for short to medium haul route planning whereas Hub and Spoke model is much suited for long haul route planning. These models work really well for the airlines which use them. For passengers it is about the particular model which provides them with the easiest route and flights to their destination.
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