Percentage of connecting passengers. As discussed in the previous section, the competition between FSCs and
LCCs is ultimately carried out between the point-to-point and the hub-and-spoke network structures. It is evident
from Figure 4 that non-stop flights remain the hallmark of the LCC business model. Although some LCCs such as
JetBlue and AirTran use hub-like focus airports in New York City and Atlanta, respectively, the overwhelming
majority of LCC passengers fly non-stop. Moreover, following the recent acquisition of AirTran, Southwest plans to
diminish the role of Atlanta as a connecting hub, therefore showing its commitment to the core low-cost model
(Yamanouchi, 2011).