Airline Development

Airline Development runs in forward player turn order. On your turn, act as much as you need, then pass. The turn can be interrupted by an auction or a trade response; after that response finishes, your turn resumes.

Your actions

You may take any combination of these actions during your turn:

1. Start a gate auction. Open bidding for one unowned gate at an airport that is not full. You may start at most two auctions during your turn.
2. Launch a route. Use one unused gate you own at each of two different airports. You cannot already have a route between those airports.
3. Close a route. Close one of your routes and release both endpoint gates as unused.
4. Forfeit a gate. Return one of your unused gates to its airport.
5. Propose a trade. Offer cash, unused gates, and complete routes to another airline.
6. Pass. End your turn and hand play to the next airline.

Launches, closures, and forfeitures charge the fees listed in Costs and Profit Reference. You must be able to pay a fee when you submit the action.

Gate auctions

Choose an airport with an available unowned gate and open with a whole-dollar bid at least equal to that airport's minimum bid and no greater than your cash. The opening bid is not charged immediately.

All active players enter the auction in current turn order. The active bidder may raise the current bid or pass. Passing removes that airline from this auction. When one bidder remains, that airline wins the first available unowned gate at the selected airport and pays its final bid. Only the auction winner receives the gate.

An auction is an interruption inside the initiator's turn. Once it ends, the initiating airline continues its Airline Development turn. A gate won during another airline's turn is immediately owned but cannot be used to launch a route until your own development turn.

Launching and closing routes

A launch requires two unused gates that you own, one at each endpoint. The airports must be different, and your airline cannot already fly that airport pair. The launch fee is $1 regardless of route size.

Closing a route costs $1. The route disappears, both endpoint gates become unused, and every affected route is recalculated. Closing a route can therefore change competition, network factors, and operating profit.

Trades

A trade is between two airlines and can include any combination of cash, unused gates, and complete routes. A route always carries both of its endpoint gates with it. You cannot trade a used gate by itself, and a route cannot be transferred if the receiving airline already has a route between the same airports.

The proposer must be able to pay the cash offered. The receiving airline may accept or decline; if it accepts, it must be able to pay the cash requested. Acceptance transfers everything at once and recalculates all affected networks. Declining transfers nothing. Either response returns the development turn to the proposer.

Other airlines' turns

While another airline has the development turn, you can:

• bid in or pass from its gate auction;
• accept or decline a trade offered to you.

You cannot launch or close a route, forfeit a gate, or start your own auction outside your development turn.