The risk is only as big as the risk of the flight being cancelled altogether. The reason they go through a specific hub is due to the network effects: The perso

The risk is only as big as the risk of the flight being cancelled altogether. The reason they go through a specific hub is due to the network effects: The person going from LA to Des Moines sits next to a person going to New York and a person going to Miami, and after the transfer sits next to a person coming from Boston and a person coming from Seattle. Rerouting willy-nilly to punish cheaters would impose a far greater cost on themselves.