Phoenix Mesa Airport

I personally have flown into Phoenix Airport at least twice, but have never flown into an airport in Mesa, Az. currently known as Williams Gateway. To take Jahn's lead, students if you were running Williams Gateway, what would you change the name of your airport to?? If you said Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport then you would have gotten an A. Check out this story.

Read the entire story from AZ Central.com but consider this one Section:

"Using a variety of scenarios based on trends and experiences at other secondary airports in the country, the firm projected a yearly passenger boarding count of almost 5.1 million on the high end and more than 1.3 million on the low side. Either figure represents an astronomical climb from the nearly 19,000 commercial airlines passengers who flew out of Williams Gateway during the fiscal year that ended June 30. "

In the past I have said 100 times that we should model ourselves after Rockford, now we may saying Phoenix-Mesa as a model airport. Here is where it gets even more interesting, do you remember when Allegiant use to only have one destination city--Las Vegas? Then they added Sanford (outside Orlando), followed by St Pete's (outside Tampa), followed by Fort Lauderdale and guess what students is their 5th destination city? If you guessed Phoenix-Mesa then increase your grade to A+. Right now Allegiant flies from 12 cities to Phoenix-Mesa.

We really blew it with Allegiant. Their whole model was patterned on secondary airport, but where secondary airports like Sanford, St Pete's, Rockford and Phoenix-Mesa were able to get on board and make the numbers work, we missed big time.

Letter to The Editor

I’m writing regarding the Worcester Regional Airport dilemma. I think they should forget about rebuilding the airport and put it to better use.

Let’s start making money for our wonderful city that is slowly dying. Casinos are a way to go, and what better place to have it but the airport? Never mind selling it to a casino investor; we could have both. What casino do you know of that has many entrance and exits points? We would have Mill Street, Pleasant Street, Goddard Memorial Drive and Route 56. Plus you could keep a portion of the airport for the high rollers to fly into. How many casinos have an airport? And the traffic wouldn’t be all in one area. Is this something we could look into?

Let’s keep our money in Massachusetts and stop supporting Connecticut.

JUDITH MARTIN

Worcester

VLJ's

For quite a while we have been urging ORH to invite VLJ (very light jet) carriers to our airport like Linear Air , based out of Hanscom, and Pogo, based out of Chicopee to come and base operations or at least a satellite at ORH. Have we talked to either airlines? Who knows?? According to the official airport board minutes, we have not, but keep in mind that according to the official board minutes all we do at ORH are photo-shoots and never ending repairs to hangar 2.

VLJ's could be the next huge thing in the airline business or it can be a complete bust. Either way our empty facility should have been a perfect testing ground, instead we are on the sidelines again. Why am I ranting right now? Just saw this press release below:



Pogo Jet IPO Reveals Plan To Buy Eclipse 500s

September 18, 2007

On Thursday afternoon, Pogo Jet filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public stock offering to raise money to launch Pogo’s very light jet air charter service. In the filing, Pogo Jet said that it is negotiating the purchase of 25 Eclipse 500s and plans to begin operations in the first quarter of 2009 from a base at Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee, Mass. The would-be operator expects its Eclipse fleet to grow to 100 airplanes by 2011. Pogo Jet plans to offer whole-airplane Part 135 charter in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Ohio Valley and the Carolinas using Eclipse 500s with three passenger seats and two-pilot crews. By the end of the third year of operation, Pogo Jet expects to be flying its Eclipse 500s at an annual rate of 2,000 hours per aircraft.

Back

Worcester Airport Commission

I found yesterday's blog regarding the Cambria Airport's Commission actions regarding the Johnstown Airport facility to be one of the most refreshing items that I have read in a very long time. Imagine an airport commission to take it upon themselves to terminate the current employees and to contract with the FBO to run the daily operations to save the tax-payers??

What can or does our current Airport Commission do?? Review the September 14, 2007 blog below. The current role of the Airport Commission has changed "dramatically" under the operating agreement with MassPort, but there is still a "significant" role for the commission. What is it? I have no idea!!! Looking at the monthly minutes, not much there unless you are very interested in photo-shoots or the never ending repairs to hangar 2. If you want to know the monthly operational losses, the ongoing negotiations with potential airlines or the status of discussions with MassPort, do not look here.

Right now we have a asset owned by the taxpayer's of the City of Worcester called the Worcester Regional Airport that is about to make a huge decision on the future fate the next 20 years (guesstimate) effective January 1st, 2008, I wish we had an airport commission like the Cambria Airport Commission that realized their importance representing us.

Cambria County Airport

Lesson we could learn from the Tribune Democrat in Johnstown, PA:


In an unexpected and swift move, the Cambria County Airport Authority last week terminated the employees of the Johnstown facility and contracted with MTT Aviation Services to manage the day-to-day operations of the airport. MTT is a private company owned by MountainTop Technologies of Johnstown.

We repeatedly have pushed government agencies toward privatization, and while the airport authority did not sell the airport (we hope that comes later), they did the next best thing by turning its management over to a private company.The former airport manager and his staff are all great people, and we hope they are considered by MTT Aviation, or another employer, for their skills. But we believe that a private company, looking to serve customers in the brutal marketplace in which airports compete, will serve the region better than county employees.

Authority chairman Raymond Porsch said he expects the move will save $50,000 to $70,000 per year, a significant amount considering the tenuous state of the county’s finances. But a move such as this should do more than just save money. We have been critical of the airport authority and airport management because of the lack of adequate commercial passenger service in and out of Johnstown.

We urge the new managers at the airport to vigorously pursue new and better service options for our region. The airport authority should hold MTT’s feet to the fire in terms of luring new carriers. If demands to improve service weren’t included in the deal, and if service doesn’t improve, then this move was ill-conceived.We know the challenges in the industry, and we don’t expect overnight miracles. But we certainly hope, and expect, that the good folks at MTT can show the county, and the populace, that they are going to make our airport more useful.We wish them well.

We’ll be watching.

Park Ave Art Festival

I went to it today and bought this picture for ten dollars from Peter Ring Studios, I thought it was great.

Cheapflights.com

Low-cost carrier Skybus Airlines could end up serving two destinations in the Bahamas when it begins service.

Following approval from the US Department of Transportation in July, the airline is to commence operations "on or about" October 1, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

The original Skybus service bid was for a service from Port Columbus to the Grand Bahama Island city of Freeport. However, Skybus Spokesman Bob Tenenbaum said that this service was mooted "as a result of a specific request from the government of the Bahamas".

It is thought that the carrier would prefer to alternate between flights to Freeport, and service to the Bahamian capital Nassau.

Robin Schneider of Twin Horizons Travel commented: "Freeport has a couple of neat hotels and casinos, but Nassau is clearly the more desirable location."

He added: "I don't think people would be crowding the planes to go to Freeport."

American Airlines and Delta Air Lines currently serve Grand Bahama International Airport in Freeport.

Airport Land RFP

There is a report in Tuesday night's City Council meeting regarding the one bidder for the parcel of land, click here. After reviewing the one bid for four months, Winward Aviation has a six month option (October, 2007 thru March, 2008) to lease one or both of the parcels. During this 6 month period Winward will perform a market survey to determine the need for additional T-hangars.

Should they, Winward, not have conducted this market study before bidding on the parcels?? At the end of the 6 months, if Winward decides that there is no demand do they lose their deposit, which I believe was $10,000???

July Board Minutes On-line

Check them out, click here. Will the work in hangar 2 ever be done?

On a serious note, check out the comments from the City Solicitor. Although the role of the Airport Commission has changed "dramatically" under the operating agreement with MassPort, there is still a significant role for the commission.

At the same time MassPort runs "the daily operations/acitvity at the airport", so then why does the Airport commission vote on photoshoots? Would that not fall under "daily operations/activity"?

Honestly I am trying to figure out what exactly the Airport Commission is suppose to do. Based on the Airport minutes they are not involved in the daily operations of the airport due to the operating agreement with MassPort. At the same time we know that they are not involved in any negotiation with MassPort or prospective airlines since they are never mentioned in any of the Airport Commission Minutes.

This begs the question. What "significiant role" does the Airport Commission, who represent the tax-payers of Worcester, play at ORH?

Lastly no marketing report. What is IMG doing with the 200,000?

Master Plan--no update.

Busy the Last Couple of Days

Quick update:

• no reports from the Airport Liaison
• no communication from the Airport Liaison
• no airport commission minutes on-line for July-AUgust
• no word on the status of the Master Plan
• 2 1/2 months into 6 months extension and no word on current negotiations with Massport

Linear Update

From the BusinessWire.

CONCORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Linear Air, the premier air-taxi service that is revolutionizing personal air transportation, has announced the anticipated first flight of their Eclipse 500 Very Light Jet (VLJ) for mid-September. This flight will mark the first customer trip for a VLJ in the Northeast by the Concord, MA based air-taxi service, headed by President and CEO Bill Herp.

The Eclipse 500, manufactured by Albuquerque, New Mexico based Eclipse Aviation Corporation, is the first of a new class of aircraft called Very Light Jets, or VLJ’s. The cutting edge technology on board this revolutionary aircraft cuts the cost of personal jet travel in half, making private air travel accessible to millions more than currently in existence. The Eclipse 500 cruises at over 400 miles per hour, accommodates 4 passengers with 2 pilots, and has a range of over 1,000 miles.

By adding this jet to their fleet, Linear Air strives to make private jet travel more accessible to a wide-range of businesspeople, with prices not far above commercial airlines’ first-class or last-minute fares. Over the next two years, Linear Air’s VLJ fleet will grow to 30, allowing the company to expand its existing propjet service within point-to-point 500-mile regional networks around major metropolitan areas.

“We could not be more excited to be the first air-taxi service in the Northeast to offer service on this revolutionary jet,” says Bill Herp, President and CEO of Linear Air. “The fact is, this VLJ and the additional fleet we’ve ordered will make a seamless transition into our current business model allowing customers immediate access to cutting-edge aviation.”

Currently, Linear Air operates the largest on-demand fleet of executive Cessna Grand Caravan propjets in the U.S. With the addition of this first VLJ and another three by the end of the year for a total of four in 2007, Linear Air will continue to provide customers the ability to set a custom schedule with attractive fares, convenience and flexibility, now with additional speed and efficiency - a “car service with wings” type experience.

Linear Air is planning a launch event with its first customer aboard the VLJ later this month. Local dignitaries, officials from the Massachusetts Port Authority and Hanscom Field Airport (a Linear Air base of operations), will join Herp to celebrate this historic occasion.

Skybus at Westover

From the Republican:

It's been less than two months since discount carrier Skybus Airlines established a daily link between Chicopee's Westover Metropolitan Airport and Columbus, Ohio, and it looks like this bird is going to fly.

Skybus, the first regular passenger service out of Westover in about 20 years, the startup company with its growing fleet of orange-painted jets is becoming a popular choice for travelers between the two cities.

And why not. Besides fares starting as low as $10 a flight, Skybus has deliberately chosen smaller, less-congested, passenger-friendly airports to launch and expand its business. At Westover, the planes touch down at 6:45 p.m. and leave at 7:21, arriving in Columbus at 9:03 p.m.

Since its inaugural flight on July 16, business has been brisk, averaging approximately 100 inbound and outbound passengers a day, according to Allan W. Blair, president and chief executive officer of Westover Metropolitan Development Corp., which owns the airport. "It's beyond our expectations, he said." Skybus spokesman Robert Tenenbaum concurred, saying the route had met the "high-end" of the airline's expectations.

The success of Skybus Airlines is excellent news for the region's business and tourist economies. While Westover airport services a much smaller niche than Bradley International Airport, which began daily nonstop flights to Amsterdam this summer, both airports are important for local businesses.

From its Columbus hub, Skybus offers connecting flights to other destinations, including Florida, California and Washington state. Blair would like to see Skybus add a morning flight to its Westover schedule. It could happen, given its success. It's a question of availability, Tenebaum said. Right now, Skybus has five A319 jets, with plans to add 75 more by the end of 2012.

If the Western Massachusetts market can keep pace as new planes are added to the fleet, the sky's the limit for the economy

Worcester Love

Another great episode on Tu Moda

Councilor Petty

I like him alot. In today's Telegram,there was a short story about him and his re-election efforts. There was one line that caught my attention:

"The city still has some time to turn around Worcester Regional Airport, he said, before it is turned over to the Massachusetts Port Authority."

Not sure what he can possibly mean by that??

Allegiant Update

Story from MSN Money Central:

Allegiant Air traffic jumps 55.8 percent

Allegiant Air LLC has announced that the number of passengers for its scheduled service jumped 55.8 percent in August compared to the same period a year ago. The Las Vegas-based, low fare carrier, which operates the largest scheduled service at Orlando Sanford International Airport, had 254,687 passengers last month, up from 163,504 in August 2006. The load factor also increased to 86.8 percent, up from 78.4 percent.

Allegiant, a subsidiary of Allegiant Travel Co. (Nasdaq: ALGT), focuses on linking travelers in small cities to world-class leisure destinations such as Orlando, where it has flights to and from 26 destinations.

July Board Minutes

Still not on-line....

Letter to the Editor

From the Telegram:

It was interesting to read in the newspaper that Saint-Gobain was planning to expand its Northboro facility by 55,000 square feet to accommodate an additional 300 employees (Telegram & Gazette, Aug. 25). When Norton first established the Northboro facility, it would have been easier to have put it in Worcester. There was plenty of spare land at Norton’s Greendale plant and the facility would have been closer to other facilities which used similar technology. Norton management, however, decided not to locate in Worcester because, despite many open and closed meetings with the City Council, there was no willingness on the city’s part to stop discriminating in the tax rate against business. That discrimination continues and, in fact, has become more entrenched in the attitudes of all city councilors.

It is useless to indulge in pipe dreams like a letter writer in the same edition of the T&G who stated that development would take place in Main South if the PIP shelter and Centro Las Americas were removed. Worcester’s City Council and administration should aim to make Worcester an attractive urban bedroom community for people who work in the suburbs or Boston and forget about attracting any business here. Of course, because there will be so little business, the residential tax rate will soar.

DONALD R. MELVILLE

Allegiant's CEO Comments

Full his full interview go to FlightGlobal.com. Here is his most interesting comment and might explain why Allegiant left ORH?

Comment #1 from Mr Gallagher

That new approach must also apply to fuel services. "Fuel is a pain in the ass," says Gallagher, but it represents 40% of Allegiant's expenses. "So I'm in the fuel business." Airports should not "outsource and forget" fuelling services. "A monopoly fueller is a serious competitive handicap. We literally have a number of cities we won't go into because of this. They are not just making a living off us they are making a killing off us, and we are just not going to do it."

Allegiant Air Route Map

I remember, not too long ago, when there was only one destination (Vegas) with only a few cities being serviced. Thier growth fopcusing on secondary airports has been impressive.

Allegiant Route Map

Click on Rockford.

Chicopee Casino?

Turns out that Harry is not the only seeing the potential of a secondary airport having the ability to lure a casino to Massachusetts. Check out this article in the Republican. Here is part of the story:


The mayor said there are 100 acres available for development between the airport and state turnpike exit that are owned by the city, state and Westover Metropolitan Development Corp. Although casino gambling is not legal in Massachusetts, there is a chance the governor will ask the Legislature to vote on the issue.



Maybe the RFP for the parcel of the land at ORH should have been for a casino operator??

July & August Board Minutes

Still not on-line

Telegram Letter to the Editor

Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Sell Worcester airport to casino investors

Sheldon Adelson, the sixth-richest person in the world, proposes to build a casino in Marlboro. Mohegan Sun, the third-largest casino in the world also proposes to build a casino in Palmer. Should either proposal go forward, they will need an airport to fly in their high rollers.

Enter the sale of Worcester Regional Airport to either group. Rather than wait until January to let Massport take over the airport for pennies on the dollar, sell the airport outright to either casino group for a potential eight-figure windfall into the city’s coffers. You now have laid the foundation for property tax relief for residents and businesses in Worcester and also save teaching, fire and police jobs.

HARRY TEMBENIS

Two Posts Today

Today I received two posts, which I feel exemplify the blog itself. First, someone (anonymous-surprise) asked if I had received any information regarding my requests from the airport liaison. The answer is, and still is, no. In fact I sent an e-mail to our airport liaison Sunday night inquiring to:

1. My public information request on the route analysis that have been done by the various consultants.
2. The July minutes still are not posted
3. Who was the one bidder on the parcel of land, some 4 months later
4. Where is the Master Plan

The anonymous poster then accused me of deleting comments, so why should I be mad when my requests to our airport liaison are not honored?? Answer: The airport liaison is held to a different standard then me, it is called Massachusetts General Law (MGL)-- can you say Sunshine Week. There is no MGL that prohibits me from deleting any comments that I want to cancel since my blog is a private entity. Sorry, none of you saw this comment, I deleted it.

On the other end of the spectrum, I received a link to an article from Harry Tembenis. Harry, per usual great link. In the end, I am merely want to make ORH the airport that I know that it can be so that it can contribute to the City of Worcester's revenue stream, versus costing approximately $1,200,000 per year.

Anonymous posters, who I will continue to delete as I see fit, can accuse me of who knows what, but I feel the majority of people know nothing would make me happier then to be discussing a successful airport that contributes to the City of Worcester's bottom line, versus my continued unanswered questions.

Stewart Doing Great

Please note the link to a story in the Time Herald Record. Stewart had over 90,000 passengers in one month--July. Remember Stewart was the airport that was privatized via a long-term lease (99 years) with National Express approximately 10 years. They have done such a great job that the Ports of New York and New Jersey are buying the airport back with National Express making lots of monies. Why have we not invited National Express to ORH to try the same thing?

I can easily see MassPort doing the same thing with ORH over ten years. Problem is that in ten years we will not have the cash to buy the airport back from MassPort.

66,000 Operations

I was just reading the official website and noticed the following:



All General Aviation activity and services remain available. Last year we had over 66,000 operations involving private, corporate and general aviation. We are continuing our Lobster give-a-way for pilots. Contact WiFi Accessable Swissport link on this site or call 508 755-5870. For more information see the "GENERAL AVIATION SERVICES" link on this web site.



Here is my question 66,000 operations? That averages out to 180 per day. I had no idea that ORH was that busy?

Oh Yeah

We still have no idea, although it has been 4 months, who the one bidder was for the parcel of land at ORH that was put out to bid (RFP) twice.

Frustrated

1. No word from our airport liaison
2. July and August Board Minutes still not on-line
3. Status of negotiations with MassPort?
4. ORH Master Plan?
5. ORH not an issue in this election

Although we all have known that control of ORH will turned over to MassPort, via a long-term lease or sale. I am more convinced then ever that it will be done for pennies on the dollar. Good news is that ORH will become the airport that is should be, but the bad news is how much money will we have left on the table.

Bottom line is that we should have been doing a nationwide sale on ORH the past three years to ensure the highest possible return for the tax-payers. At his point, hemoragging money the way we are and the current City of Worcester financial condition, we are at the mercy of MassPort and whatever offer the make.

Kudos to Mike Germain

Imagine someone actually talking about the fate of ORH. Check out the article: here is a part:



“If you watch one City Council meeting you realize right away that we have too many councilors,” Mr. Germain said. “Not only is it fiscally irresponsible to have the current number, it’s functionally impossible to get the needs of the city taken care of with so many people who have so many personal agendas.” Mr. Germain said Worcester Regional Airport has been a drain on the local government and, as a result, believes the city should pull out of the airport business. He said the travel needs of city residents are already being well taken care of by existing New England airports

Homes on Airports in Florida

Very interesting site:

http://floridaairporthomes.com/florida%20airports.php

And check out, it is pretty dam good:

http://www.worcesterlove.com/

and still no word from the airport liaison and the July minutes are still not posted.

Worcester-Metrowest-Boston Airport

Does anyone know that status of the ORH name change?

July Airport Board Minutes

Not on line yet.

15 Coppage Drive

Airport Industrial Park Asset going out to auction this Friday. The building is not going up for auction, but the $200 per year lease that expires in 2026 will be auctioned. Question is why has the Airport Commission terminated the lease when 240,379 in real estate taxes are owed, a violation of the lease.
	WORCESTER, MA - 86,664+/- SF INDUSTRIAL BUILDING ON 12.4+/- AC Property Address: 15 Coppage Dr., Worcester, MA Auction Reference No.: 07-0983 Date: 08/24/07 10:00AM More Info: Manufacturing/Warehouse Building on 12.4+/- Acres 86,664+/- SF, including mezzanine and office area on second floor Located in the Worcester Airport Industrial Park w/ wonderful access to Rte. 9 and Mass Pike Terms: 50K certified, 10% deposit, 30 days to close. Full terms found in PIP.
Click Images to Enlarge

Cape Air

Cape Air may link Evansville and South Bend with a hub, Indianapolis. Cape Air links P-Town, Hyannis, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket with Logan and have a code-sharing agreement with JetBlue. We can not get Cape Air to fly to Logan from ORH?

From the Indianapolis Business Journal:



Cape Air might link Indy to Evansville, South Bend

Thu. August 16 - 2007
IBJ Staff
Massachusetts-based Cape Air has scheduled a meeting Aug. 20 in Indianapolis with airport officials from Evansville and South Bend to discuss starting commuter flights between the two cities and Indianapolis.An official of Evansville Regional Airport told the Evansville Courier & Press that the planes used by Cape Air, nine-passenger Cesna 402s, would be ideal.If round-trip flights can be launched in October or November, as hoped, the cost likely would average $100 to $150.Indianapolis-based Chautauqua Airlines operated flights between Evansville and Indianapolis on behalf of USAirways until the 2001 terrorist attacks hurt air travel.

ORH Tenants Are they Happy?

Alot of people check out this blog, on average 100 per day. I would like people to put comments about what they have heard from current tenants at ORH regarding their feelings about the airport.

Thanks

Bill

Boston Herald

FYI-The Boston Herald has a section in the middle of their web site called your tax dollars at work, which salaries of State employees as well as various cities in the Commonwealth, including Worcester.

Rockford Story

Great story on Rockford from AZCentral.com. Here is part:


The airport went from a passenger count of about 1,400 in 2002, when O'Brien started with the airport, to more than 230,000 this year, he said, with the name change occurring in phases through those years.

He expects to eclipse the 300,000 passenger count next year, but O'Brien said changing the name was only a small part of that."It starts first with convincing the airlines. When we're trying to sell them on RFD, they're staring at us like, 'You live in the shadow of the world's busiest airport and you've got no passenger service, what are you nuts?' " O'Brien said. "We said, 'I don't want you to start service to Rockford, Illinois, I want you to start service to Chicago-Rockford, a backdoor to 13.1 million people.' "

Airport Liaison

Still no word on my July 20th records request.

Rockford Gets Two New Allegiant Destinations

Rockford already flies to the three destination cities that Allegiant has:

1. Vegas
2. St Petes
3. Sanford

Recently Allegiant announced the addition of two new destination cities:

1. Mesa
2. Fort Lauderdale

Rockford is getting both. For a full story check out Tom Bona's story in the Rockford Register. Although it would have been very tough, if not impossible to have flights to Vegas/Mesa from ORH. There is no way we should have lost Allegiant and today we should have three destinations from ORH to Florida.

Master Plan

In December of 2005, I attended a meeting conducted by Leigh Fisher Consultants, now Jacobs, on the Master Plan. We were told that there would be another meeting in the Spring/Summer of 2006 with the final results being released in the fall of 2006.

Flash forward to August, 2007, no 20 Year Master Plan yet? As we are posed to make a huge decision on the future of ORH would it not make sense to have this 20 Master Plan in hand?

Poll

Versus put the MassPort count-down back on the blog, I want to do a poll. THANKS YNG!!! Please leave comments for potential polls.

Virgin America

Has their first flight yesterday. Is ORH talking to them?




PS Still not word on my last public records request.

June Airport Commission Minutes

Click here. It amazes me that things like Thrifty Car Rental are covered in such detail but negotiations with any potential airlines or on-going negotiations with MassPort are not even mentioned.

Still no word on my latest public records request from Airport Liaison Niddrie.

Rockford -- 19.500 More Passengers in July then ORH

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) - The Chicago/Rockford International Airport had more than 19,500 passengers last month -- the third-best performance since 2003. The only two months that were better were March 2005 and March 2007 -- prime spring break months.

In all, 19,656 passengers passed through the airport in July. That was a 19% increase over the same period last year. And July marked the second straight month in which planes were more than 90% full.

Airport officials hope the strong showing will persuade airlines to increase their offerings in Rockford. In particular, officials are looking to Allegiant Air. Rockford is among the cities the airline is considering for expanded service to Phoenix/Mesa, Arizona, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Allegiant Still Doing Great

Discount airline Allegiant Air saw its second quarter profit jump 112 percent compared to the previous year with a growing number of passengers flying to Las Vegas and Orlando, Fla., along with expansion into Tampa. Allegiant's second quarter net income was $10 million compared to $4.7 million in the second quarter of 2006.

Total operating revenue was $88.9 million, a 49.1 percent increase over $59.7 million during the second three months of last year. "Both Las Vegas and Orlando were substantially stronger year over year, with Orlando's improvement significantly outpacing that of Las Vegas," said Michael Gallagher Jr., Allegiant chairman, CEO and president, in a statement.

Airport Privatization

Please read the attached story on privatization. The City of Worcester should not be in the train station business, the golf course or airport business. At the same time the City Administration should ensure the highest return on these tax-payer assets. Take a a few minutes and read this story, well worth it.

Still no word from Airport Liaison Niddrie on my request.

Route Analysis Reports

In the past I had asked to see the packages that are prepared for airlines to come to ORH that are prepared by our consultant, IMG. In the end I changed my mind, since I did not want to interfere with any pending negotiations or be blamed for losing a potential airlines. Some people disagreed with my decision, but everyone has the right to request this information on their own. For the record I have never seen these presentations.

Recently, however, I have asked for route analysis reports that have been prepared by our consultants. In fact I feel that these should be placed right on the City of Worcester Official Airport website so potential airlines can see them. Although it has been more then 10 days, I have yet to hear anything .

Allegiant Adds Two Destination Cities

Allegiant originally started with service only to Las Vegas. In 2005 they added Sanford (Orlando) then towards the end of last year or beginning of this year St Pete's (Tampa) was added. Now they have announced Fort Lauderdale and Phoenix.

Although Vegas and Phoenix would have have been viable options out of ORH with the Allegiant fleet, ORH could have potentially had three Flroida destinations if Allegiant had stayed.

15 Coppage

In the newspaper today the leasehold interest is being foreclosed on by the Massachusetts Property and Casualty Insurance Companies Community and Economic Development Initiative. Although it is a great lease couple hundred per year through 2026 wonder if they know about the 250,000 in taxes due?

Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines(R) Invites Cities to Declare Independence from High Fares
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.-(Business Wire)-July 27, 2007 - Spirit Airlines is inviting cities to declare their independence from high fares and today announces a process whereby cities may submit proposals to Spirit in order to be selected for new air service and be part of Spirit's largest expansion to-date. The carrier will select up to 10 new routes from South Florida and will add up to three new international gateway cities. The selected cities will be added to Spirit's network in 2008, with all services initiated by summer, providing immediate economic benefit to the cities through lower fares, on-time new planes, and friendly service.

"Even though we are the largest and most successful Ultra Low Cost Carrier serving the Caribbean and Latin America from Fort Lauderdale, my phone still rings constantly from people asking us to save their city from high fares," said Barry Biffle, Chief Marketing Officer. "This next wave of expansion will be the largest in our history and will allow us the opportunity to free as many communities as possible from the shackles of high fares."
Spirit Airlines will accept proposals until Friday, August 10, 2007. Only complete proposals will be accepted. For proposal details please visit www.adioshighfares.com. Details on the web site also are available in Spanish and Portuguese.

About Spirit Airlines
Spirit Airlines, Inc. is the largest Ultra Low Cost Carrier in the United States, Latin America and The Caribbean. Its all-Airbus fleet, the youngest in the Americas, flies more than 185 daily flights to 35 destinations. The company is based in Miramar, Florida, and employs 2,300.

Land RFP

I have e-mailed our airport liaison, Phil Niddrie, to see if he can reveal the name of the one entity who bid on the most recent Land RFP from the Spring? Stay tuned.

Here is the response via e-mail this morning from Airport Liaison Niddrie:

"As of this time, we cannot."

15 Coppage Drive

In light of the announcement that Union Station the Restaurant lets take another look at 15 Coppage Drive again. The other day I saw a demand notice in the paper for this property. Remember this is the property that had a 20 year lease renewed about one year ago by the Airport Commission for something like $200 per year.

One of the terms of the lease is that taxes must be current. As of today the taxes due are $238,165, but whose counting.

Skybus Problem

As I see it the problem with Skybus is that there are no direct flights. Now add the fact you have to connect through Columbus where there are no other airlines. Here is a story from the Seacoastonline that drive this point home:


Skybus 'nightmare' sours local family

By Shir Haberman
shaberman@seacoastonline.com


Years ago, at the end of a commercial for Yuban coffee, an old geezer with the solid Yankee name of John Arbuckle would somberly intone, "You get what you pay for." For the Hunter family of Stratham, the lower fares and close airport proximity that Skybus Airlines offers are not worth the anxiety, frustration and anger they went through when the airline canceled a scheduled flight to Portsmouth last Thursday.

Hilda Hunter was supposed to be on that flight, and what went on due to that cancellation is indelibly etched in the minds of her family. "It was a nightmare," said Nancy Hunter, the 75-year-old Cincinnati woman's daughter-in-law. Hilda was among the 144 passengers scheduled to take off on the two-hour evening flight from Port Columbus, Ohio, to Portsmouth International Airport on July 19. Fog along the Seacoast that night first delayed take-off from Columbus, then forced the flight to land at Bradley Airport in Hartford, Conn.

The passengers were held on the plane without access to their luggage at Bradley for several hours until the airline made the decision to have the flight return to Columbus. The plane landed in Columbus at 5 a.m. on Friday, and those passengers who wished to continue to fly with Skybus were booked on an extra flight scheduled to take off for Pease at 8 p.m. Friday night. The scheduled two-hour trip wound up taking about 28 hours. Hilda Hunter's flight landed around midnight on Friday. While delays and cancellations are common in the airline industry, the problems created were exacerbated by Skybus' limited information network and nonexistent backup infrastructure.

"When they got back to Columbus, there was nobody to communicate what was happening," Nancy Hunter said. "The airline didn't offer the passengers anything — not a cup of coffee or something to eat. They were just told to sit and wait. "And there was nobody at Pease," Hunter said.

Skybus spokesman Bob Tenenbaum called what happened to Skybus' Portsmouth flight on Thursday "the perfect storm." He said it was a combination of bad weather and an inoperable flight tracking system that the company has been working on for months that would have allowed those waiting for the flight here in the Northeast to know its status. "The concerns (of people like the Hunters) are legitimate," Tenenbaum said. "There is supposed to be a flight status update system on the Skybus Web site, but it is not working properly."

Tenenbaum said the decision to have the flight return to Columbus was made to accommodate the majority of the people on the flight. "At least half the people were from the Columbus area," he said. "It was better for them to come back to a place where there were Skybus people who could help them then be dropped off at an airport where they were not supposed to be." However, there were some passengers aboard the flight who felt the problems on Thursday were systemic.

"They had no Plan B," Linda Cargill of Canal Winchester, Ohio, told The Columbus Dispatch. "It was kind of one of those things where you keep thinking, 'I'm just going to wake up and this will all be a dream.'" As for the Hunters, this experience has soured them on Skybus. "We have friends who bought Skybus tickets for December," Nancy Hunter said. "I'm worried for them. "God forbid, there's (bad) weather," she said. "They're up the creek."

Hunter said her mother-in-law will never fly Skybus again, nor will any other member of her family. "They lost not only my mother, they lost me and my husband, and he has told all the people at Osram, where he works, about it," she said.

Allegiant Leaves Portsmouth

Full story from the Manchester Union Leader. Here is part:



Allegiant Air LLC, the low-cost air carrier, said yesterday it would no longer offer its seasonal air service between Portsmouth International Airport at Pease and Orlando Sanford International Airport in Florida.

The airline cited competitive reasons as the key driver behind its decision. The air-travel market for the Seacoast and southern Maine has become increasingly crowded, as carriers such as AirTran Airways and JetBlue Airways have started offering service to the Orlando area from Portland, Maine. Skybus Airlines Inc. also offers service to Florida points from Portsmouth through its hub in Columbus, Ohio, although AirTran and JetBlue's operations carried far more weight in Allegiant's decision.

GIQ

How many ounces in a GIQ?

Kay's Wine & Spirits, Pawtucket, RI. September 30, 1948 copied from Gansett web site

Route Analysis

To date we have spent some $200,000 in IMG. I would imagine that they have prepared route analysis for ORH; for example, ORH to Orlando. I have thus asked our airport liaison to put all the route analysis on the City website. You never know who may be lookinig?

I have also made a public records request for this information so if it is not put up on the official ORH site, I will put it on FlyOrh.com.

Logan

Drove a friend of mine yesterday morning at 4:00AM to Logan for his flight to Orlando on JetBlue. It was his first flight on JetBlue and loved it, by the way. That is not the purpose of the blog,

First, he would have used Allegiant to Sanford from ORH if they were still here. Second the tolls alone from Route 146 and back cost $9.20. Now you add my time, inconvenience and cost of gas etc what would the cost be??? All I am trying to say is that a Cape Air flight code sharing with JetBlue would be quite attractive.

Skybus 1st Flight to Westover

For the complete story from the Republican click here, but here is part of it:

CHICOPEE - Skybus Airlines' inaugural flight to Westover Metropolitan Airport this evening was greeted by a rainbow and plenty of fanfare.
The orange A319 jet touched down at 6:43 p.m., 10 minutes early. The discount passenger carrier, based out of Columbus, Ohio, is the first regular passenger service at the airport since the late 1980s.
"I think it's wonderful," said Steve A. Baldwin, of West Springfield, who was traveling with his wife, Carin D. Baldwin. "It's much cheaper."
Baldwin, who works for an Amish furniture maker, was traveling to Ohio State University and then on to Holmes County to tour several Amish furniture factories. Golf was also on his itinerary.
Skybus will offer once-daily flights to Columbus from Westover. The airline will offer 10, $10 seats on each flight. Other ticket prices range from $30 to $150 and are cheaper when reserved at least a month ahead of time

City Council Meeting Tonight

Here is a quick summary of information on the airport for tonight's City Council meeting:

1. Master Plan should be released this summer.
2. Who the one one responder to the RFP for the land parcels is still not revealed. A meeting with the one reponder has occured and the City is waiting for answers to some questions before a recommendation is made.
3. IMG "continues to provide the city with analysis of potential carriers and the creation of specific marketing packages and strategies for these identified airlines." Who the airlines are and what it the status of any negotiations is not detailed.
4. Nothing on negotiations with MassPort regarding the next deadline, January 1st, 2008

Air Taxi Service

How does air taxi service like Linear Air work? Here is an example:

Client: ABC
Need: Frequent travel for teams between their office in Cambridge, MA and their parent company in NJ

What they were doing: Flying Continental from Boston to Newark, using car service for 40+ minute drive to corporate HQ in NJ. Paying $600 pp walk up rate on Continental shuttle

What they now do: Fly Linear Air from Bedford to Morristown and have a 10 minute cab ride to corporate HQ in NJ. They pay $3,400 roundtrip for the aircraft and take 6 or more pax for a pp price of $567.

Benefits:

• Cost savings in airfare
• Cost savings in car service
• Cost savings in parking and tolls
• Time savings in getting to and thru both airports
• Time savings in bracketing the air travel tightly around their work schedule, not around an airline schedule
• Vastly improved level of service with valet parking, pilots treating them as honored guests, unlimited free standard catering on the flights, and access to a flying conference room to work during travel.
• Streamlined billing, a single transaction for all pax.
• Stress free, quick, convenient and real dollar savings before the soft cost savings are even considered.
  

Allegiant Air Qtrly Update

LAS VEGAS, July 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Allegiant Travel Company will hold its second quarter 2007 financial results conference call Aug. 7, 2007. A live broadcast of the conference call will be available via the company's Investor Relations website homepage at http://ir.allegiantair.com. The webcast will be also be archived on the "Events & Presentations" section of the site.

    (Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060516/LATU102LOGO)

   When:  Tuesday, August 7, 2007 at 10 a.m. (Pacific)

   Who:   Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., Chief Executive Officer and President
          Linda Marvin, Chief Financial Officer
          Andrew C. Levy, Managing Director - Planning

   How:   Web Address: http://ir.allegiantair.com

About the Company

Las Vegas-based Allegiant Travel Company , is focused on linking travelers in small cities to world-class leisure destinations such as Las Vegas, Nev., Orlando, Fla. and Tampa/St. Petersburg, Fla. Through its subsidiary, Allegiant Air, the Company operates a low-cost, high-efficiency, all-jet passenger airline offering air travel both on a stand-alone basis and bundled with hotel rooms, rental cars and other travel related services. ALGT/G

For further information please visit the company's investor web site: http://ir.allegiantair.com.

Reference to the Company's web site above does not constitute incorporation of any of the information thereon into this press release.

June Airport Minutes

They are on-line, click here. Lots of information regarding rental agreements with Thrifty Car Rental and the renting of the parking lot to Worcester State College. Not much regarding the status of anything IMG is doing, are there any ongoing airline negotiations and nothing regarding the extention of the current operating agreement with MassPort.

Stewart Update

Just a review. Stewart is the airport in Newburgh, New York that was privatized about 10 years ago when it leased the airport to National Express for 99 years. This private company has done a great job and now the Port Authority of New York is buying it back for big monies. Here is a very interesting story and how if a major "Port" Authority owns a local airport can make huge improvements both to the airport and infrastructure.

Rail link eyed for New York-area airport

NEWBURGH, N.Y., July 10 (UPI) -- New York may build a commuter rail stop at Stewart International Airport after the city's major airport operator takes it over, a state engineer said Tuesday. The state Department of Transportation has begun a study into the feasibility of constructing a link to Stewart, 55 miles north of New York City, from an existing suburban train station, Department of Transportation Chief Engineer Robert Dennison said.

This would give passengers an express train trip between the airport and the city or Newark Liberty International Airport, he said. Metro-North Commuter Railroad, which operates the rail line, has pushed for the link, which would involve buying property and building new tracks, Mid-Hudson News Network reported. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey plans to take over the 2,400-acre airport in Newburgh, N.Y., in October to reduce congestion at Newark, LaGuardia and Kennedy International airports.

The takeover will also "prepare us for tremendous anticipated growth in air travel for years to come," Port Authority Chairman Anthony Coscia said. The Port Authority has budgeted $150 million for improvements, including additional parking and an international passenger terminal. Other plans include runway extensions, new taxiways, major cargo expansions and improved highway access.

Allegiant Link

Thanks Harry;

Allegiant Air Promo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7LI1GtMbyo

This director is good:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBH6pdpyU4o

Master Plan

It has been about three years now that the 20 Year Master Plan has been worked on. Last I heard was that the final report will be due this summer??

Linear Lands First VLJ

This is huge for Linear, from the Boston Globe:

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Linear Air lands new "very light jet."

Linear Air, a Concord-based air taxi service, said today it has taken delivery of its first Eclipse 500, a so-called "very light jet" that's designed to reduce the costs of personal air travel.

Linear Air said that the Eclipse 500 will be ferried later this week to Hanscom Field in Bedford, where it will soon enter into service.

According to Linear Air, the Eclipse 500 cruises at more than 400 miles per hour, seats three or four passengers with two pilots, and has a range of more than 1,000 miles.

Linear Air said it has ordered 30 Eclipse 500 jets, which are scheduled for delivery over the next two years.

The Eclipse 500 is manufactured by Eclipse Aviation Corp. of New Mexico.
(By Chris Reidy, Globe staff)

Posted by Boston Globe Business Team at 07:58 AM

Allegiant 2nd Qtr Results

Why couldn't we get airlines like this? June of last year versus June of this year, passenger count is up 57.50. These guys are growing fast, now with three destinations (Vegas, Sanford and St Pete's and new destinations will surely follow. By the way, they still fly out of Portsmouth.


Allegiant Reports June, Second Quarter 2007 Traffic

LAS VEGAS, July 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Allegiant Air, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Allegiant Travel Company , today reported preliminary passenger traffic results for June and Second Quarter 2007.

                                Scheduled Service

                                 Jun. 2007       Jun. 2006       Change
  Passengers                      281,977         178,988         57.5%
  Revenue passenger miles (000)   263,091         183,590         43.3%
  Available seat miles (000)      296,982         214,359         38.5%
  Load factor                       88.6%           85.6%       3.0 pts

                                  2Q 2007         2Q 2006        Change
  Passengers                      753,716         476,174         58.3%
  Revenue passenger miles (000)   708,616         504,635         40.4%
  Available seat miles (000)      833,475         610,294         36.6%
  Load factor                       85.0%           82.7%       2.3 pts

                                Total System*

                                Jun. 2007       Jun. 2006        Change
  Passengers                      298,935         205,408         45.5%
  Revenue passenger miles (000)   281,855         204,230         38.0%
  Available seat miles (000)      324,308         247,940         30.8%
  Load factor                       86.9%           82.4%       4.5 pts

                                  2Q 2007         2Q 2006        Change
  Passengers                      810,555         535,499         51.4%
  Revenue passenger miles (000)   774,828         563,236         37.6%
  Available seat miles (000)      928,177         703,336         32.0%
  Load factor                       83.5%           80.1%       3.4 pts

   *Total system includes scheduled service, fixed fee contract and non-
    revenue flying.

Worcester Airport Name

Travis e-mailed me asking how Worcester got the ORH designation. I believe it has something to do with it being named O'Brien Regional Airport? Can someone enlighten me to the background.

Thanks

Bill

Rockford

I know this gets boring, but how many times do I have to say it?? Forget about the consultants and the studies-simply copy what Rockford Airport does!!! Story by Tom Bona from the Rockford Register. Couple of things to keep in mind, 1) why is this secondary airport able to succeed after 9/11 (common excuse), 2) able to keep Allegiant happy, 3) potentially reach 250,000 this year while ORH is on track for no passengers and 4) potentially expect 10 major announcements this year? Here is the link or you can read the whole story below:


Airport pushes to add routes
Use of current lineup grows, but not enough to hit goal for year.

By Thomas V. Bona
ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
Click here for more information about Thomas V. Bona

ROCKFORD — Halfway through 2007, Chicago/Rockford International Airport has seen more than 100,000 passengers come and go — well ahead of last year’s pace. Still, officials who hope to reach the stated goal of 250,000 passengers for the year will have to convince an airline to add flights, because even if they filled the rest of 2007’s scheduled flights, they’d come up short.

“It’s still very doable, it’s still within reach, things are still lining up as we would hope,” Executive Director Bob O’Brien said Tuesday. “There’s a strong potential that we’ll be adding one or two airlines and/or destinations.” In June, 18,286 passengers flew in and out of Rockford, a 12 percent increase from last June. For the year, 114,575 passengers flew here, a 35 percent increase from this time last year.

Airplanes were on average 91 percent full, the most of any month so far this year and above the industry average of 80 percent. United Airlines’ Denver route was again the most popular with 5,215 passengers. Allegiant Air’s route to Orlando had 4,913 passengers, and its route to Las Vegas had 4,785. The Las Vegas planes were 94 percent full.

O’Brien said those numbers make good arguments for more flights a week on those routes. Allegiant actually is cutting flights to Florida throughout its system this fall. There won’t be any flights between Rockford and Clearwater/St. Petersburg from Aug. 24 to Oct. 18. Orlando will drop to 16 flights in September and 28 in October before returning to the mid-30s for the winter.

“We will have a seasonal reduction in service in August/September. This will also happen in Fort Wayne, Lansing, Peoria, Roanoke and Toledo and is based on traffic demands for Florida,” Allegiant spokeswoman Tyri Squyres said. “You will also notice on the Web site that we are already booking October through February for those flights.”

Also returning in December are weekly flights to Cancun. According to Apple Vacations’ Web site, the first flight is Dec. 22. O’Brien said airport officials are lobbying Apple Vacations to add a second weekly flight since last winter’s flights were on average 96 percent full. O’Brien said the airport could have as many as 10 major announcements with companies it works with this year, including airlines and development partners.

He expects an announcement on the airport’s “Charters for Starters” program in the next month or two. The airport plans to charter airplanes for yearlong routes to Fort Myers, Fla., and the New York City and Phoenix areas with the program. It would take about three months after an announcement to start any new service, O’Brien said.

Airport officials previously said they’re interested in flying to the Long Island MacArthur Airport in Islip for the New York service in an effort to get Southwest Airlines to take over the route when the year is done. But with Southwest recently cutting three daily flights from Midway International Airport to Islip, O’Brien said officials are thinking about their plans.
Another possibility is for a Myrtle Beach airline to start service from there to Rockford in March.

Water & Sewer Connections

This has nothing to do with the airport , but I know Jahn will want to know this. Effective July 1st the new fees to connect to the water and sewer has risen to 1320 per bedroom. Two years ago the fee was 660 and last year it was 990. In total a new three bedroom will cost 4,960 (3 bedrooms times 1320 plus 1000 for sewer).

We can, however, waive 100,000 in fees for a Performing Arts Center?

Portsmouth Study

Story in the Boston Globe details how Portsmouth hired a consultant to do a study. Why?? Secondary airports like ORH and Portsmouth should stop wasting their monies on consultants and spend the money actually attracting airlines?? Seriously I could have written this report for Portsmouth. Here is the actual story:

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) -- A new study shows more than a million travelers might use New Hampshire's Portsmouth International Airport if it were to expand.

The airport commissioned a consultant's study to identify how to build the airport. It recommends adding chartered international flights, increasing the number of low-cost flights and creating a time-sharing program for corporate jets.

Airport leaders say they're open to those suggestions.

SkyBus, a new low-budget airline, announced last month it would flying in and out of the airport. The study was commissioned before SkyBus made its announcement.

------

Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com

Westover

Another story from the Republican:

Chicopee's Westover Metropolitan Airport has received word that it will be able to roll out the equivalent of a $1.85 million welcome map to greet new discount-fare startup Skybus Airlines.
The grant money is good news for Skybus, which is planning its inaugural non-stop flight to Columbus, Ohio, on July 16. Skybus will also offer daily nonstop service between Columbus and San Diego, Calif., the St. Augustine, Jacksonville and Daytona Beach, Fla. area through St. Augustine Airport and a second daily nonstop flight to Fort Lauderdale. "It's very timely for us," said Allan W. Blair, president of Westover Metropolitan Development Corp

The grant money will be used to pay for utilities improvements, increased capacity for hangar upgrades, the reconstruction of Hangar Drive, finishing upgrades to Industrial Park Road and nearly doubling airport parking spaces. Airport improvements are expected to create hundreds of new jobs. With the first-class improvements, Westover Metropolitan Airport could be just the ticket for regional economic growth.

July 1st

Today was suppose to be the 1st day of a new era at ORH. Instead nothing will happen another six months, we will lose even more money the next 6 months to keep ORH open for no reason. Sad day for the airport.

USA3000

USA3000 was one of the first airlines that we ever mentioned on the blog and they are still around doing well. Maybe not as well as Allegiant, but much better then TransMeridian, SouthEast, Hooters or SkyValue. Right now they have 6 Florida destinations:

1. St Petes
2. Melbourne
3. Fort Myers
4. Sarasota
   
5. Fort Lauderdale
6. Orlando

Now add the fact that they are based in Philadelphia and they also work (maybe they even own) Apple Vacations.

New Bedford Airport

Story from SouthCoastToday:


NEW BEDFORD — The city is actively pursuing a return of passenger airline service to New Bedford Regional Airport. "We've made contact with various people in the industry," said James Burgess, chairman of the city's Airport Commission. "We're looking at established carriers right now. Whoever we brought in, we'd want them to be successful."

Mr. Burgess said the commission would like to see the return of connecting flights to a major airport hub, like Newark, N.J. or New York City. The airport can handle small jets that carry up to 50 passengers, he said, but the service might also be handled by a smaller, turbo-prop airplane. "We're never going to be a Providence or a Logan," Mr. Burgess said, "but there is a large population in and around the airport that could be served by such a service."

The service would provide three round trips a day to a hub. Mayor Scott W. Lang said he is pushing for a return of passenger service to a major hub, too. Cape Air already flies out of New Bedford to Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard, carrying 24,000 passengers a year, according to the city airport's Web site. "We're looking at all options to make the airport an economic development engine for the city and the region," he said.

If and when the commission were to convince a carrier to launch passenger service out of New Bedford two things would have to happen, Mr. Burgess said. The airport would have to re-apply for certification for passenger service. Even though Cape Air already flies out of the airport, the facility would have to receive a different certification for the service being proposed. The move would also require significant upgrades to the security system at the airport, because larger airports in Newark or New York require that bags and passengers be screened according to guidelines from the Federal Aviation Administration. Mr. Burgess said the cost of getting certified and the upgrades "would depend on the airline flying," he said.

According to a story in the Boston Globe last week, Skybus Airlines, a new Ohio-based airline offering fares as low as $10 one-way, will begin offering service out of Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee, to Columbus, Ohio, on July 16. Westover currently does not offer passenger service. Skybus began service to the Boston area recently when flights began from Columbus to Portsmouth International Airport in New Hampshire The airline focuses on airports that are located an hour away from major airports, as well as flying into major airports from smaller airports.

Mr. Burgess said he had not read the Globe story about Skybus but was interested in the announcement.

1.85 Million Grant for Westover

From the Republican:

The city has received a $1.85 million state grant to fund renovations and improvements at Westover Metropolitan Airport. The state Opportunity Relocation and Expansion Jobs Capital Program is providing $100 million in grants statewide to improve public infrastructure with the goal of promoting economic expansion and job growth.

The $1.85 million will be used by airport owner Westover Metropolitan Development Corp. for utilities improvements, increased capacity for hangar upgrades, the reconstruction of Hangar Drive, finishing upgrades to Industrial Park Road and nearly doubling airport parking spaces.
"It's very timely for us," said Allan W. Blair, president and chief executive officer of Westover Metropolitan Development Corp., yesterday. "We wouldn't have been able to do all this work without the grant."

The timeliness of the grant is tied to a discount passenger carrier, Skybus Airlines, that is set to start offering service on July 16. Skybus is the first regular passenger service at the airport since the late 1980s. Skybus will offer once-daily flights on Airbus A319 jets to Columbus, Ohio from the airport, which includes 188 acres in the civilian portion of Westover Air Reserve Base.
Mayor Michael D. Bissonnette said the grant, which is overseen by the state Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, was a joint application of the city, Westover Metropolitan Development Corp. and Skybus.

"It's a pretty significant piece of the airport puzzle," Bissonnette said. "This will solve the parking issue. It will also provide some infrastructure needs to the areas near the hangars."
State Rep. Joseph F. Wagner, D-Chicopee, made the grant announcement with other area legislators yesterday afternoon. "Not only is the civil aviation division of the Westover Metropolitan Development Corporation poised to take a giant step forward, but this will mean hundreds of new jobs for local citizens," said Wagner, chairman of the Joint Committee on Transportation, in a statement.

Blair said it's one of the largest grants the corporation has received over the years.
"This is really very important and helpful. It really spurs economic growth and job expansion," Blair said.

Councilor Irish for Mayor

Councilor Irish announced his candidacy for Mayor yesterday. Since then I have heard him on WTAG (Jordan Levy) last night, WTAG (George Brown) and 830AM (Peter Blute) this morning. Although I did not hear the entire parts of the program, I did not hear him mention ORH once his idea about a month ago to invite investment bankers to Worcester and pitch the airport to infrastructure fund managers and investors.

Skybus, Chicopee and Lt Governor Murray

Interesting story in the Springfield Republican.

Nemeth Article

Sorry, there is no story from part Airport Chairman and current Commissioner Nemeth, instead we have an editorial . Before you read the editorial, do you think the editorial is critical about the decision to extend the current agreement six months? Shocker, but the editorial praises the decision to "take time to get airport agreement right." Did we not have three years to get this agreement done "right". What exactly will six more months provide of time provide to help get it done "right".

In addition we all now know what the exact terms of the said agreement will be so why don't we put these number out on the street, test the marketplace and see if anyone else may be interested in paying more, let me explain. First you need to understand that airport breaks there losses (there are no profits) into two categories:

1. non-operating (mainly debt service) approximately 800,000
   
2. operating losses approximately 1,400,000

Right now the operating agreement consists of MassPort subsidizing 68% (952,000) of the operating losses while the tax-payers of Worcester paying the remaining 32% (448,000) and 100% of the non-operating losses. Obviously these numbers change slightly as the underlying losses change, but you get the picture.

Now the deal on the table is as follows:

1. non-operating expenses will be paid 100% by the tax-payers of Worcester
2. operating losses will be paid 100% by MassPort

In the end the City of Worcester would save not having to pay 32% of an operating deficit, which currently means a savings of $448,000 based on an operating loss of 1,400,000. It will, however, still cost the taxpayers of Worcester approximately 800,000 per year for the non-operating expenses.

In the end MassPort would pick up this 32% portion and pay the entire operating deficit, now at 1,400,000. Bottom line is that MassPort would in essence be leasing the entire airport for 1,400,000. Now consider this, what if MassPort were to divert some flights to ORH and start making on money on the airport and eventually wipe out the operating deficit? The cost to lease ORH would in essence be nothing.

All I am trying to say is that a deal whereby a leasing entity would have to pay the operating deficit, which is currently at 1,400,000, but have the ability to lower their lease costs by running an efficient profitable airport to nothing would seem pretty attractive??? Today's editorial should have been "now that we all know the selling price of ORHG", lets test the marketplace to ensure we are getting the highest return for the tax-payers or Worcester. Once again the Telegram comes up short.

Press on the Airport

Still a little surprised and confused about the press coverage regarding the airport. The extension of MassPort to continue the subsidy for another 6 months was portrayed as a good thing and that somehow we would be saving money since there is a subsidy. In actuality, the extension only continues the past 8 years of poor performance 6 more months and will cost the tax-payers approximately $540,000.

Also surprised that there was not more of a reaction from our City Councilors????

Telegram Story

Here is the story from the Worcester Telegram regarding the extension. Please note that even when MassPort takes over ORH either through a long-term lease or outright sale that the debt service will still be the responsibility of ORH, which is approximately 600,000 to 700,000 per year.

We need to invite companies like National Express, who ran Stewart and are selling it for a a tidy profit, and investment bankers as Councilor Irish has recommended to look at ORH.

Final Decision--No Decision

Hate to say this, not really, I was right again. The current agreement will be extended 6 months, here is the story, note the head-line "Bail-out" and the "torturous drive" comment--not exactly positive PR for ORH.

Right now the airport is costing us (the tax-payers of Worcester) 90,000 per month based on the numbers from the first 9 months of this fiscal year. In other words this 6 months extension could cost the tax-payers of Worcester $540,000!!!

We had three years (length of the current agreement) to work on this and now we need another 6 months at $540,000? If this is the path that we have chosen then lets put the airport out for sale to anyone and everyone , invite companies like National Express or anyone else to ORH.

Sorry, but I can say anything good about this when I actually thought the future would be changing for the better on July 1st. Now we are looking at another 6 months where nothing will happen at a cost to the tax-payers of Worcester of over a half million dollars by not being able to come up with something, anything, the past three years.

I can not wait to read Mr Nemeth's column this Sunday.

10 Days

Right now the most important issue facing ORH is what the management/ownership structure will be on July 1st. Obviously the past two operating agreements the past 8 years with MassPort have not worked.

10 days to find out.

11 Days

The current operating agreement has 11 days to go. What will happen during this time:

1. An agreement will be presented to either outright sell or long-term lease ORH and be approved.
2. The current agreement will be extended short-term to work out the details of number 1.

I am leaning towards #2.

Allegiant Map

I have not checked this out for a while. Click here. Sorry to bring this up but Allegiant. As we all know Las Vegas was their first destination and then they added Sanford. Since Allegiant departed ORH, St Pete's has been added as a third destination and now flies to 14 cities.

Should I say it again?? We missed a big opportunity with Allegiant to re-establish ORH as a viable option.

Bob Nemeth

We are due for a Sunday Editorial from ex-Chairman and current Airport Commissioner Nemeth on ORH.

JetBlue

I absolutely love flying with them. Think everyone must remember the incident at JFK where people sat in their plane for hours. Since that time JetBlue has made alot of changes, including replacing Neeleman. Let me tell you a little about my delays with them.

Both times my flights were delayed, I received a $50 credit (believe that was the amount) for the inconvenience. Most recently flying from Orlando with a late flight, I showed up early and was able to take the earlier flight for an extra $30.

Can not say enough about them. Now if I could get dropped off at ORH, hop on a Cape Air flight, fly to Logan bypass the security lines at Logan, traffic, parking fees etc and then connect with JetBlue to fly direct . How good would that be???

Sorry, for all those SouthWest fans there is no comparison between JetBlue and SouthWest although the "ding" ads from SouthWest are much better then any of JetBlue's ads.

May Airport Minutes

Still not on-line. Correction, it is now on-line, click here.

Nothing on prospective airlines or status of negotiations with MassPort.

Postive/Negative Blog

I honestly hope that this blog is neither. In fact I truly believe that the website and blog try to portray an accurate picture of ORH. To that end, let me give you an example. Before I do, I can not say enough about JetBlue. Unless you have flown JetBlue, you do not know what I mean.

I have put alot of emphasis into the City of Worcester putting a big time effort into getting Cape Air to fly out of ORH with a code-sharing agreement with JetBlue, like they have done with P-town, Hyannis, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Recently, I believe it was Harry Tembenis, pointed out that Cape Air had a rather large problem with their fleet of Cessnas. You read the story here. Now putting this link on the blog about Cape Air, does that make me negative towards Cape Air?? No, I still believe we should be looking into them.

Bottom line is that the more information that all of us put forward about ORH will make ORH be the successful airport that we all know that it can be. In addition if anyone wants to start to own blog or website, let me know I will put links to it anywhere I can.



Thanks

Bill


PS Since January 1st of this year, I personally have flown three round-trips to Florida (Tampa, Fort Lauderedale and Orlando) none of which from ORH (2 from Boston on JetBlue and 1 from Providence on Southwest). That is the real story here.

17 Days

Less then 3 weeks to the end of the current operating agreement. If we do in fact long-term lease or sell ORH to MassPort, this is a huge decision based on the mere size and value of ORH. To review an agreement, vote on it and have it effective by July 1st seems almost impossible right now. My bet right now is that we end up extending the current agreement for three months.

MaxJet

On a cruiser so I am having a hard time reading the Telegram. Can anyone tell me if there has been anything since Sunday? I will be back Friday.

In the meantime lets keep a closer eye on MaxJet.

Logan Airport

Seems like yesterday I was stuck at Fort Lauderdale Airport sitting out a JetBlue delay, today I am sitting here at Logan waiting out JetBlue again. Even with the delay, if you have not flown JetBlue, I highly recommend the experience. Plenty of leg room, great leather seats and your own personal television.

Sitting here, I have had a chance to roam the all the JetBlue gates. Bothers me to see the Cape Air gate with all the Cape Air plans utilized for the code sharing agreement theat flies people direct to Hyannis, P-Town, MArtha's Vineyard and Nantucket. Why not Worcester? What next JetBlue will add Chicopee under their code sharing agreement with JetBlue.

Before I left I had a chance to review the City Council agenda, by the way what a great job our city clerk does. Nothing on the agenda regarding MassPort. Good news, however, IMG is still looking for the right airline for ORH. I feel much better knowing that and the final results of the Master Plan will be released this summer. It has taken 3 years to put together this Master Plan and does anyone else see the ironies in the fact the ORH Master Plan will be released when ORH will most likely be under the control of MassPort??

By the way Logan wacks you 7.99 per day to access the net.

22 Days

Do not know what to say, except there are now 22 days left until the end of the current operating agreement..... There is alot to do over the next 22 days if we are in fact going to long-term lease or sell the airport to MassPort on July 1st.

Very interesting story in WoMag yesterday regarding Union Station. Makes you wonder who is checking to make sure the tenants at the Airport and Airport Industrial Park are in compliance with their leases. I know of one property that owes 200,000 in real estate taxes while the current lease requires property taxes to be current?

JetBlue Press Release

NEW YORK,NY (rushprnews) May 24, 2007 — JetBlue Airways Corporation (Nasdaq:JBLU) today launches non-stop service to Nantucket, Mass. from its home base of operations at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport. The low-fare, high-value airline is introducing convenient daily service to the popular Massachusetts island resort for the peak season through September 24(a), with additional weekend flights operating throughout the summer.

JetBlue’s regular fares between New York and Nantucket range from $79(b) to $279(b) each way. To celebrate the launch of the new route, the airline is offering its $79(b) each-way fares with no advance purchase required for travel on nonstop flights between New York and Nantucket completed on or before June 30, 2007.

“Nantucket is a desirable vacation destination for many New Yorkers, and JetBlue now connects these locations with direct and convenient service,” said Rob Maruster, JetBlue Senior Vice President Airports and Operational Planning. “We look forward to welcoming many travelers on this new route, which will allow them to experience our roomy leather seats, complimentary snacks and the most live entertainment options available on any airline during their flight.”

“Nantucket Island, a pioneer of the whaling industry, is very pleased to welcome JetBlue Airways, a pioneer of low-cost, quality air service, to Nantucket,” said E. Foley Vaughan, Nantucket Memorial Airport Commission Chairman. “JetBlue’s presence has improved our overall air service to the island from New York, even before their first flight.”

JetBlue’s service between New York and Nantucket:

Council Meeting

Watched about an hour last night. Although I more then understand the importance of Section 18, I did not hear one word on ORH. Only 24 days until the end of the current operating, which not renewed will end up costing the City of Worcester $200,000 per month to keep open.

Maybe I missed something. Did anyone see anything on the airport last night?

Another Update

Next Airport Commission is next Monday.

There is a meeting scheduled to discuss the one RFP that was submitted at the end of April for the land parcels at the airport. Who was is the one bidder is still not know, when final decision to accept or not accept the bid or when the Master Plan will be released is not known.

City Council Meeting

Noting on the agenda for the airport negotiations with MassPort. Today is June 4th, we have alot to do between now and July 1st.

June 1st

30 days till the end of the current operating agreement. I remember when the the counter started at a little over 300 days. I feel MassPort taking control over ORH via a long-term lease or outright sale may be the best thing that ever happened to ORH, although I do feel that the "net" should have been expanded by offering an RFP for the entire airport to attract companies like National Express. At the same time I disappointed that we are 30 days away from the end of the current agreement, whereby the price tag for ORH jumps to approximately 200,000 per month without a "partner" and we have no idea what this new agreement looks like??

Lets hope that the negotiations are finalized shortly so we can see the actual agreement....