Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Virginia: Regional airports lose service as airlines phase out smaller aircraft. Major carriers are cutting back on the use of smaller planes, like the ones that fly into Roanoke and Lynchburg.

 

LYNCHBURG, Va.—

Like thousands of other college students in Lynchburg, Suki Hoffman relies on air travel.

"I live in San Diego, so obviously flying in and out is a big important issue," said Hoffman, who was returning from Thanksgiving break Tuesday.

Flying in and out of Lynchburg has been a huge convenience.

"It helps a lot of my friends out, because they don't have to drive three hours out of their way to get me to DC or down to Roanoke," Hoffman said.

But as airlines change the way they do business, catching a regional flight is getting harder. Companies like Delta and United Continental are getting rid of smaller planes.

The big reason? Fuel cost. Experts say larger planes are more efficient.

"When you have a 50 seater versus a 100 seater, the fuel per person is obviously going to be more on the 50-seat jet," said Thomas Becher, a Roanoke public relations firm owner who worked in the airline industry when smaller planes were popular.

"There was a big period where airlines were adding (smaller) jets like crazy," Becher said.

Those days are over, and regional airports are suffering.

"A lot of really small communities in the upper midwest and other places have lost service," said Becher. "I don't see that happening here."

Becher believes Roanoke and Lynchburg still have enough air travelers to keep service from leaving all together.

But there have been some changes. Delta stopped all of its flights at Lynchburg Regional in January.

US Airways still serves the airport, and officials there hope to bring in another major airline soon.

"We're continuing to fill up the airplanes and our future still looks bright," said Lynchburg Regional Airport Director, Mark Courtney. "A lot of it depends on external factors that are out of our control."

As smaller planes go away, Roanoke and Lynchburg could still be serviced by larger jets with 100-seats or more. Whether the airlines are willing to bring those planes to this area remains to be seen.

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