by Bob Payne
posted July 17, 2008
With the announcement that Volkswagen is building a $1 billion plant in Chattanooga, speculation has surfaced regarding possible expansion into the Chattanooga Airport by a low-fare carrier. Two of the largest low-fare carriers stated on Wednesday that there are no plans to expand service to Chattanooga.
Tad Hutcheson, Airtran vice president for marketing and sales, said that the current economic times make it difficult for Chattanooga to attract airlines. He also cited rising fuel costs, passenger traffic at Lovell Field, and the fact that Airtran would have to connect to Airtran’s hub in Atlanta, making it a flight of only 100 miles, with more ground time than flight time. This makes it economically infeasible, he said.
Mr. Hutcheson added that, “To attract an airline, I think Chattanooga would have to offer revenue and profit guarantees to the airline it is pursuing. In fact, some mid-size cities do this - they guarantee the airline to make a profit. If the airline doesn't, the airport or city pays the difference. These cities understand that airline service is an economic development generator. One city even adds a charge to the garbage bill for each resident to help fund air service development.”
Linda Rutherford, vice president of public relations for Southwest Airlines, also confirmed that the airline had no plans to expand this year to Chattanooga, due in part to economic conditions and fuel costs.
Southwest Airlines currently has operations in Nashville and Birmingham.
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