It's audition time at the Hattiesburg-Laurel Regional Airport.
Last week, Delta Airlines retired the last of the 32-seat Saab turboprops that had been servicing the regional airport, meaning both of Hattiesburg-Laurel's twice-daily flights will be flown by 50-seat jets.
"We are 100 percent jet service now," Executive Director Thomas Heanue said.
How long that will continue, well that depends.
Delta announced on July 15 that it was discontinuing service to 24 smaller-market airports, including Hattiesburg-Laurel. Federal guidelines require Delta to continue to provide service for at least 90 days from the date of the announcement while a replacement carrier is sought.
Heanue said solid boarding figures during that period could go a long way toward wooing another suitor or even change Delta's mind about dropping the Pine Belt-to-Memphis route.
"Maybe Delta rethinks its decision or at least, we'd be attractive to another carrier," Heanue said. "We need to continue to fully support this service while we've got it because if we don't, nobody else is going to want to come in here."
This summer, departing flights were about half full, averaging about 52.7 percent capacity between the 50-seat jet that flew the 6 a.m. route and the 32-seat turbo-prop that handled the 11:25 a.m. flight.
"That early flight, not many are using that one, and I can understand that, having to get up that early," Heanue said. "But now, with (another jet) later, let's see how we do with that one."
Departures were up 17.5 percent this summer compared to June-August in 2010, with 3,979 passengers leaving from Pine Belt in that three-month period.
"We've been doing pretty good," Heanue said. "We had a couple of months where we knocked it out of the ballpark."
Kathy Harrison of Ellisville said losing nearby commercial service would be a disaster.
"We need this right here, for the community, the economy, everything," said Harrison, who was returning from a mission to the East Coast to aid those crippled during Hurricane Irene.
"Without it, we'd have to go to Gulfport or go to New Orleans. It's very convenient and very advantageous to us."
Heanue said seeking Delta's possible replacement remained in its preliminary stages.
"But, there's not going to be a whole bunch of people who are going to want to do it in a place that is carrying five or 10 people," Heanue said. "We need everybody's support."
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