5 Questions for Frontier's New Lynx Aviation

Tom Nunn was recently named president of Frontier Airlines' new Westminster-based subsidiary Lynx Aviation, which will operate a fleet of Q400 turboprop planes between Denver and yet-to-be named cities within 650 miles. Nunn - previously Frontier's vice president of aviation safety and security - spoke with the Rocky Mountain News about turboprop planes, how the carrier will decide which cities to serve and what role incentives will play.

1. The word turboprop conjures up images of a noisy, rickety plane that Indiana Jones would hop on in a jungle. Why fly turboprops in the age of advanced jets?

This is a newly designed aircraft. It is a very large turboprop that holds 74 passengers in the configuration we have. It has new engines, new wings, new technology in the front end and the cockpit as well throughout the aircraft. The Q in Q400 stands for quiet. They have similar technology to the Bose headsets. Microphones placed throughout the cabin pick up noise and, through a microprocessor, emit signals that cancel it out throughout every stage of the flight. It's got taller cabins than a regional jet. A 6-foot, 2-inch passenger can stand up in the cabin without ducking. At the same time, the turboprop allows us to operate in and out of airports where jets typically cannot.

2.Numerous cities - from Steamboat Springs to Grand Forks, N.D. - have expressed interest in luring Lynx service. How will you decide where to fly?

We're looking at factors that will help us determine whether the route is profitable and what kind of demand we can expect. One of the primary missions of Lynx is to provide traffic to mainline Frontier flights, so there's a whole formula that determines the value of connecting passengers.

3.Will incentives such as tax breaks and reduced landing fees sway your decision on where to fly?

It's going to depend on what they are. The soft factors are things you look at, but when it's all said and done if you can't sustain profitability it doesn't work. Incentives may tip the scale if it's an unproven route and we are having a difficult time due to a lack of history and data. Some incentives allow us to take a chance and give us enough time to turn a route profitable.

4.Frontier has done a good job of creating local brand loyalty. Why create a subsidiary with a different name?

It's a totally different operation from our mainline Frontier service. It's a whole different business model serving different types of communities than we historically have. Given that this aircraft is so unique, we found that (starting a subsidiary) allows us to start with clean sheet of paper.

5.This type of operation has been tried before, with mixed results. Why will Frontier succeed?

With the new technology on this aircraft we have a 30 percent advantage on operating costs over 70-seat regional jets. From an operating standpoint the Q400 gives us performance and technological capabilities you haven't seen in the mountains. There hasn't been an aircraft with this type of performance characteristic. It has the latest and greatest systems and visual capabilities that allow us to land in all types of weather.

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