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TWA regional jet service?
by: kbarrows 1309 of 1313
Any opinions on this proposal from TWA?
Feb. 22 (Omaha World-Herald/KRTBN)--Pat Fritz of O'Neill, Neb., dreams of the day when a commercial jet swoops down into her corner of the state and flies her away.
To board a jet now, central Nebraskans drive long distances to Lincoln or Omaha airports, or catch commuter planes at Grand Island, Kearney or North Platte and fly to airports at Denver or Minneapolis.
Bob Selig, manager of the Central Nebraska Regional Airport in Grand Island, has a plan that would cut driving time to jet service in half for Fritz, who is three to four hours from Lincoln and Omaha.
Selig is spearheading an effort to build support from surrounding communities for a proposal by Trans World Airlines to provide three round-trip DC-9 jet flights daily between Grand Island and its main hub, St. Louis.
"With jet service to St. Louis, we could have one-stop service to London, Paris and Tokyo," Selig said. "As a region of 400,000 people, central Nebraska could have jet service that no community in the region could obtain individually."
A TWA spokesman emphasized that the airline has not made a final decision on sending jets to Grand Island. It wants to measure central Nebraskans' support for its proposal.
"About 130,000 central Nebraska travelers use airlines annually," Selig said. "About 88 percent of those travelers drive to Lincoln and Omaha for air service."
Selig targeted TWA, United and Northwest Airlines for additional air service to the entire region -- from Aurora to Lexington and the South Dakota to Kansas borders.
While United and Northwest supported such service, TWA was the only airline to respond with a written proposal.
Frontier Airlines had provided 737 jet service for a while to send passengers from several central Nebraska airports to its Denver hub, but TWA is the first to offer nonstop service, Selig said.
"Nonstop air service to a hub would be a major leap for central-Nebraska travelers," he said. "We are trying to bring the region up to a level of parity with other Midwestern communities."
Central Nebraska's improved air service would come with a three-part price:
-- Improvements would have to be made to the Central Nebraska Regional Airport to handle larger jets.
-- TWA requires some sort of financial commitment from the region to ensure that its $15 million annual cost of bringing jet service would be supported by ticket sales.
-- Historically competitive central Nebraska communities would have to work together to support such jet service.
"Expanding the airport would be no problem," Selig said. "As the region's only primary commercial facility, the Central Nebraska Regional Airport has direct access to federal grant funds. We can upgrade safety, security and certification standards to meet whatever is necessary to accommodate larger aircraft."
A task force, made up of regional business leaders, is working to provide TWA with a financial commitment for future air service, Selig said. A survey tallied nearly $5 million in potential business air travel annually.
"The perception was that people drove to Lincoln and Omaha airports because of discount airlines and lower air fares, but it's really because of lack of air service to central Nebraska," Selig said. "Central Nebraskans would pay $50 more a ticket for the local convenience."
While TWA has not asked the region for an outright subsidy for increased air service, the airline wants to minimize its level of financial risk, Selig said.
The Hall County Airport Authority legally cannot provide the airline with financial incentives, but private groups in the region may offer such inducements, Selig said.
"TWA has left it open, but wants some sign of regional commitment," he said. "The task force is considering such things as advance ticket sales to return to the airline with a proposal within 60 days."
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Posted: Feb 24 1999 1:54PM EST as a reply to: Msg 1 by YahooFinance
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