Columbia Regional Airport Gets New Carrier

It's Air Midwest, by a nose.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has selected the Wichita, Kan.-based carrier, which operates as US Airways Express, to provide essential air service at Columbia Regional Airport.

Part of the Phoenix-based Mesa Air Group, Air Midwest was selected over RegionsAir, an AmericanConnection operator based in Smyrna, Tenn. The initial deal, approved yesterday, is for a two-year period at an annual subsidy of $598,751, according to the order posted on the transportation department's Web site.

The Air Midwest proposal also featured a walk-up fare of $59 each way to either Kansas City or St. Louis. The airline is expected to begin local operations within 90 days, although the exact date has not been set.

"I'm really excited about it," B.J. Hunter, chairman of the airport advisory board, said this morning of Mesa Air's selection. "It appears that they want to come in and really grow the market. I look forward to really good things from them."

In February, the city's only commercial airline service, St. Louis-based Trans States Airlines, gave notice it would leave the market, which triggered provisions of a federal law designed to provide minimum, or essential, air service to smaller markets.

Mike Reynolds, acting U.S. assistant secretary for aviation and international affairs, said in the written order the "decision in this case was very close" and essentially boiled down to money.

The Air Midwest option "is preferred by Columbia, and it also requires the least subsidy," he wrote.

The Columbia City Council endorsed the Mesa Air proposal last month on the recommendation of the airport advisory board, which liked that it included a Kansas City option and low-price fares. Jefferson City officials favored RegionsAir.

Air Midwest's winning bid proposed 12 nonstop round trips to St. Louis and 12 nonstop round trips to Kansas City each week using a 19-seat Beech 1900 turboprop aircraft. RegionsAir proposed four round trips to St. Louis each day using a 19-seat J-32 turboprop aircraft for an annual subsidy of $793,830.

Reynolds said the airport is giving up connections to more destinations under the Mesa Air proposal. American Airlines offers 203 nonstop flights a day to 61 destinations from St. Louis, while Air Midwest's code-sharing partners offer 16 flights a day to four destinations from St. Louis and 23 nonstop flights a day to nine destinations from Kansas City, he wrote in his opinion.

Jeffrey Hartz, a Mesa Air spokesman, said flight schedules and other information will be announced soon. "We'll be working with Trans States to work on a transition date that we'll be shooting for," he said.

The company also is considering Columbia Regional Airport for a 20,000-square-foot aircraft maintenance facility, Hartz said.

City Manager Bill Watkins will travel to Phoenix on Wednesday with Mayor Darwin Hindman, Public Works Director John Glascock and Airport Manager Kathy Frerking to meet with Mesa officials and work out the details of the agreement .

Trans States is required to work out a smooth transition by finding alternate air transportation for travelers or issuing refunds without penalty, according to the Department of Transportation order.

Mesa Air Group began in 1982 as a shuttle service between Farmington, N.M., and Albuquerque, N.M. The airline operates 185 aircraft with more than 1,100 daily departures to 173 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Mesa Air operates as America West Express, Delta Connection, US Airways Express and United Express. Last year, Mesa Air reported net income of $56.9 million on revenues of $1.1 billion.

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