clarinews@clarinet.com (DAVE McNARY, UPI Business Writer) (02/03/90)
LOS ANGELES (UPI) -- United Airlines, continuing to move toward establishing itself as the leading carrier in California, said Friday it will start service between San Francisco and John Wayne Airport in Orange County in March. United said its Orange County-San Francisco service would consist of four daily flights, one by United and three by United Express, which is operated by WestAir, of Fresno, Calif., and has a marketing agreement with United. The move follows several announcements that indicate heightened competition in the California corridor between the San Francisco Bay Area and Southern California, which has seen relatively high prices since regional airlines -- PSA, AirCal and Western -- disappeared several years ago in mergers. United said last week that it would expand its service between Los Angeles and San Francisco in April from 16 to 27 daily flights and start three flights a day between Burbank and Oakland. Earlier this week, Southwest Airlines announced it would offer heavily discounted fares between Burbank and Oakland with one-way fares of $29 and United said it would match Southwest's discounts. ``It looks to me as if United is trying to seize a competitive advantage,'' said analyst Dan Hersh of Bateman Eichler, Hill Richards. ``That is a lot of expansion in this market.'' USAir and American, the other major players in the California market, have not yet announced any new flights or discounts in reaction. Hersh said American, which has a shortage of planes, may be looking to cut back its California service. Paul Turk, an analyst with the aviation consulting firm Avmark, said it is likely that USAir will respond to the recent moves. ``The market probably does not need the additional flights,'' Turk said. ``What you have is carriers looking to combine frequency and low price in the eyes of customers.''