REGAINING A HANDLE

"US Airways dropped about 30 scheduled flights a day out of Pittsburgh," George says, "but they added perhaps between 35 to 40 flights a day in the commuter area, the regional carriers. Those are split up between RJs, Saabs, and Dash-8s. We have lost a chunk of weight but we picked up operations. What that did is affect our landing fee ... we went from 98 cents to, we figure, it will be somewhere in the area of $1.15 to $1.18."

AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT
While Bangor International is a major technical stop for corporate aviation continuing across the Atlantic, it's director, Rebecca Hupp, is among the many airport executives across the country looking for increased domestic air service. Currently Bangor has service to Boston, New York, Cincinnati, Baltimore, and Philadelphia but, Hupp says, with the advent of the regional jet "there are many markets that can be reached from Bangor and we're looking for service to additional hubs."

Air service is a critical issue to Reno/Tahoe International Airport where Director Krys T. Bart is looking to overcome a big downturn in passenger numbers over the past three years.

"The major issue for us is trying to get passengers back on a plane in a community whose primary industry is tourism," Bart says. "The whole economics of the community is dependent on people coming in, primarily by air.... The number one thing is getting people back into Reno. Number two is maintaining a low cost operating environment"

Reno/Tahoe took a big hit in air service when American Airlines bought Reno Air in 1998 and, over 18 months, basically closed it, according to Bart. Since then, and particularly in light of 9/11, it has been a struggle not so much to get new carriers in but to get the existing carriers to expand service to and from Reno/Tahoe.

"Our loads are in the high 70 percent," Bart says. "A couple of our carriers are carrying loads in the 90 percent (range). That's a clear indication that there is a demand and we need more air service."