Non-stop service between RDU and Los Angeles, San Francisco and Denver are at the top of the list as targets for expanded air service, according to a recently completed study by the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority. The study is supported by the Research Triangle Foundation and the Research Triangle Regional Partnership, and outlines the Authority's air service goals for the next several years. |
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Editorial
No matter how much airline service an airport has, it's never enough, and there's always a desire to fill in the perceived gaps. As an airport that no longer is a hub for any carrier, RDU is well served by 23 carriers offering some 250 daily flight departures and non-stop service to nearly 40 other airports. During 2004, four new non-stop destinations were added, and two others have been added in the first half of 2005.
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John Brantley
Airport Director |
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The first of this year, the Airport Authority undertook a study of RDU's air service to identify and prioritize opportunities that warrant and deserve non-stop service. The information developed provides the base for efforts to recruit carriers that appear best suited to offer particular services. In a survey of local business leaders last year, the Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP), the regional economic development agency, found the number one priority was obtaining better air service. Working with RTRP and some of those business leaders, the Authority will expand its ongoing efforts to do just that.
Domestically, the top priorities for RDU lay in the western US, the area of the country whose exchange of air travelers with RDU has grown the most rapidly over the past decade. Non-stop service to the Los Angeles Basin, the San Francisco Bay Area and Denver are the initial targets. The total annual travelers between RDU's service area and each of those areas amount to 375,000, 255,000 and 170,000, respectively, clearly sufficient to support those services. The success of the services between RDU and Phoenix, Las Vegas and Salt Lake City indicates these new western routes would be strongly supported.
Internationally, the study found that RDU's service area generates and attracts about 1.5 million annual international travelers. Transatlantic travel makes up nearly 55 percent of that travel, with Europe accounting for half of the transatlantic travel. Much of that travel flows over the major U.S. international gateways. For the past 11 years, RDU has had one daily American Airlines non-stop flight to London's Gatwick Airport, providing travelers with very good service to the British Isles and connections to many points on the European continent. Adding a second daily roundtrip between RDU and Europe is the primary target but should serve a major connecting hub on the continent in order to offer more and better connection opportunities.
Our efforts now turn toward interesting carriers in the opportunities that are present. We will work towards convincing the air carriers that allocating new or additional aircraft resources to RDU with which to operate these and other services is the best choice among their alternatives. Those efforts aren't a destination, but reflect an ongoing journey that never ends. In an environment of high fuel prices, low fares, little profit and considerable financial distress in the industry, airlines cannot afford to make poor choices. Our task will be to demonstrate that not only is RDU a good choice, it's the best choice both in the short and the long term.
Our region is armed with many positives, including considerable economic strength and lots of people who fly frequently. With the facts on our side and the commitment of our business leaders, we'll do well in recruiting new air service for RDU.
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