Continental Airlines Announces Nonstop Service Between Houst

[dbaker]

Continental Airlines Announces Nonstop Service Between Houston and Montreal

HOUSTON, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL - news) today announced new, daily seasonal service between its Houston hub and Montreal, Quebec, effective June 1 from Houston, and effective June 2 from Montreal. The flights will mark the first time these cities have been linked by nonstop jet service.

From Flight # Departs Arrives
Houston CO502 7:00 p.m. 11:56 p.m.
Montreal CO503 8:00 a.m. 11:12 a.m.

[dbaker]

Continental Airlines Announces Nonstop Service Between Houston and Montreal

HOUSTON, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL - news) today announced new, daily seasonal service between its Houston hub and Montreal, Quebec, effective June 1 from Houston, and effective June 2 from Montreal. The flights will mark the first time these cities have been linked by nonstop jet service.

From Flight # Departs Arrives
Houston CO502 7:00 p.m. 11:56 p.m.
Montreal CO503 8:00 a.m. 11:12 a.m.

[CameraGuy]

Anyone willing to wager that once CO Express takes delivery of the RJ145XR that this route becomes an express route?

[CameraGuy]

Anyone willing to wager that once CO Express takes delivery of the RJ145XR that this route becomes an express route?

[dbaker]

What's the service range of the 145XR? It's a 1600mi trip and that exceeds the range of the 145.

[dbaker]

What's the service range of the 145XR? It's a 1600mi trip and that exceeds the range of the 145.

[CameraGuy]

I'm guessing that it is in the range of 1500NM. But, I may be wrong. If I had the ambition, I'd look on the CO Pilots boards for the true answer.

When CO announced the 145XR, they mentioned IAH to Fresno and Bakersfield as possible markets. I think these flights are probably a little shorter than IAH to Montreal.

[CameraGuy]

I'm guessing that it is in the range of 1500NM. But, I may be wrong. If I had the ambition, I'd look on the CO Pilots boards for the true answer.

When CO announced the 145XR, they mentioned IAH to Fresno and Bakersfield as possible markets. I think these flights are probably a little shorter than IAH to Montreal.

[dbaker]

Originally Posted by CameraGuy

When CO announced the 145XR, they mentioned IAH to Fresno and Bakersfield as possible markets. I think these flights are probably a little shorter than IAH to Montreal.

Service to BFL from IAH would be nice, although a bit cramped. F cabin?

[dbaker]

Originally Posted by CameraGuy

When CO announced the 145XR, they mentioned IAH to Fresno and Bakersfield as possible markets. I think these flights are probably a little shorter than IAH to Montreal.

Service to BFL from IAH would be nice, although a bit cramped. F cabin?

[CameraGuy]

I'm not joking here.

Since all of the seats in the Jungle Jets are leather, they consider all of them to be F/C.

I once had someone from CO tell me that with a straight face.

[CameraGuy]

I'm not joking here.

Since all of the seats in the Jungle Jets are leather, they consider all of them to be F/C.

I once had someone from CO tell me that with a straight face.

[dbaker]

Maybe that's what some of the COX people thing, but no way that's the official product name.

[dbaker]

Maybe that's what some of the COX people thing, but no way that's the official product name.

[Scamboogery]

Originally Posted by CameraGuy

I'm guessing that it is in the range of 1500NM. But, I may be wrong. If I had the ambition, I'd look on the CO Pilots boards for the true answer.

When CO announced the 145XR, they mentioned IAH to Fresno and Bakersfield as possible markets. I think these flights are probably a little shorter than IAH to Montreal.

Looks like from the article below it's pretty much a done deal!

Terminal set to take flight

By MATT WEISER, Californian staff writer
e-mail: mweiser@bakersfield.com

Saturday June 28, 2003, 10:55:07 PM

It's been almost a generation since plans were first drafted to build a bigger passenger terminal at Meadows Field airport, and so much has changed since then.

The federal government deregulated the air passenger industry, completely changing how airlines and airports function. The Internet came along and revolutionized the way people buy plane tickets and plan their trips. A recession occurred, followed by one of the longest economic booms in history, followed by another recession still grinding away.

And then, of course, came the World Trade Center terrorist attacks -- almost two years ago already -- which forever altered the public's perception of airline travel.

On Monday, Kern County stabs its first shovel into the ground for that new airport terminal. Everyone seems to agree it's still needed, even though airline passenger volumes at Meadows Field have failed to meet the generous growth forecasts contained in the original airport expansion plan, published in 1987.

By 2000, that plan projected, 380,000 passengers a year would be flying out of Meadows Field. In reality, only 96,500 passengers boarded airliners in Bakersfield in 2002, an 18 percent drop compared with 1985, the base year used in the 1987 study.

Kern County Airports Director Ray Bishop says it is still essential to build the new $33.8 million terminal.

"It has been a long journey, but this is not the end of our journey," he said. "This is kind of the beginning of air service for our community, not the end of it. It buys for us a future that includes growth and better air service."

Plenty of others agree, even Roy Weygand, president of the Kern County Taxpayers Association.

"Unfortunately, I don't have anything bad to say about it," Weygand said. "I'm glad to see it finally being built. We do have a need for one. Our terminal is old. It was just fine to support Bakersfield 20 years ago. But since then, Bakersfield is growing up. If we're going to continue to grow, we have to have the support facilities and commodities to support growth. This is one of those facilities."

Even at present passenger volumes, the current terminal is considered too small. It was built in 1957 to handle 50,000 passengers a year.

The new terminal will be able to accommodate nearly 1 million passengers annually, and is designed to be expanded easily to handle up to 16 million passengers. The public areas of the terminal will be about four times bigger than in the current terminal.

The project also includes the airport's first indoor baggage claim area and room for five jetways, which allow passengers to move between the terminal and aircraft without stepping outdoors.

Chris Frank, president of the Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce, said these and other facets of the new terminal are critical to the area's economic future.

"It has always been a challenge to bring business clients into our community and have them judge our community by our current air terminal," said Frank. "We've had to work to overcome that first impression many times. Our new terminal will be a substantial statement of welcome, of stating we are a progressive community and that we are visionary as a community."

Some observers wonder, in this time of deep budget cuts at every level of government, how the county can afford to build such an expensive project. The funding comes from a variety of sources: $14.7 million from Federal Aviation Administration grants; $17.6 million from county sources; and $1.5 million from the city of Bakersfield.

The county's share includes $12.5 million in bonds, supported by both airport revenues and the county general fund. The rest comes from tobacco lawsuit settlement money received by the county.

Nearly all this money is legally designated specifically for the airport terminal and cannot be diverted for other purposes. The new terminal and the airport as a whole operate independently of the county's general fund.

"When government sets money aside for a specific project, it goes into an allocation area for that item," Weygand said. "To transfer to another line item without an official transfer can't be done. We're not taking money away from anybody to build this terminal."

Bishop further estimates that, once built, the new terminal will be cheaper to operate than the current one, even though it will be much bigger. That is because the current terminal has reached such a state of decay that it requires constant repair, he said, and these repairs can be expensive because the building is full of toxic asbestos insulation. He guesses the new building will actually save up to $50,000 a year in operating costs.

Yet, it's all still taxpayer money. Gene Tackett, a former Kern County supervisor, wonders if it's being spent wisely.

"It's a lot of money. It's not that I'm a skeptic, it's just that it's a lot of money being spent at a time when we're having to lay off cops and firemen," said Tackett, who is now a local political consultant. "There is always hope that we will grow stronger and better by having a beautiful airport. What we really need is passengers. We need to keep hustling to get people to ride an airplane out of Meadows Field."

To some extent, the success of the project will be measured by its ability to attract new airline service to Kern County. Revenues generated by landing fees are the primary mechanism to repay the bonds issued by the county to pay its share of the new terminal's cost.

Bishop said a new building by itself won't bring the airlines flocking to Bakersfield. Yet many believe it will help. Together with the area's rapid growth, they hope the major airlines spot a lucrative market.

"I see the air terminal as a continued action plan to bring more air service," said Frank. "We have to demonstrate, as a community, a commitment to air service. The new terminal sets the stage for us to go down that path of demonstrating to airlines that we are committed to air service."

But Todd Whitestone, a New York-based airport analyst with Standard & Poor's, a leading bond rating firm, said it is wishful thinking to believe a new terminal will lure more commercial flights. The market today is driven by bargain carriers, he said, such as Southwest and JetBlue. In the near term, he said, a community without direct service by an airline in this category will experience slow growth at best.

"If this was normal economic times for airlines, I would say generally, yes, you're in better shape having the room and better amenities," Whitestone said. "But most airlines are not looking to expand right now, and they're more interested in controlling costs than having more square footage at the gate. Airlines are under stress, and if anything, they are cutting back operations, not adding flights."

Like so many airports, Meadows Field is currently struggling just to regain the traffic it enjoyed prior to the 9-11 terrorist attacks. Today, the airport is served by 24 commercial airline trips a day by two carriers, United Express and America West. That's below the approximately 30 trips a day by five airlines that existed in 1985, and well below the 46 trips a day that served the airport in the months before 9-11.

Bishop noted some hopeful signs that these trends may be changing.

He said a new partnership with Continental Airlines is virtually assured to provide service to Houston starting early in 2004, thanks to a $1 million federal grant to support some of the airline's costs to serve Bakersfield. Another deal is near with Horizon Airlines to offer flights to Seattle. And current carrier America West recently began flying a larger, more modern jet on its Bakersfield-to-Phoenix route.

Another plus is the main runway at Meadows. It is the fifth longest in the state, and strong enough to handle a Boeing 747-400, the heaviest passenger jet flying today, Bishop said.

But at the moment, studies show only about one in four Bakersfield travelers flies out of Meadows Field. The rest use other airports -- primarily LAX -- because they offer better flight times, more connections or slightly cheaper fares.

Reducing this "leakage," as it's called in the business, will be key to the success of Meadows Field, and Bishop believes it is possible.

Forecasts show that other Southern California airports will reach capacity in 15 years, making Meadows Field a more attractive option both for local travelers, he said, and possibly convincing some Los Angeles County residents to start their trips in Bakersfield.

"We see ourselves growing as a regional airport," Bishop said. "I want to have a good enough airport and good enough service that people in Bakersfield can go where they need to go without having to drive to Los Angeles. The new building doesn't necessarily propagate better service. The thing the new building really does is it opens the door for our future."

[Nugget]

Originally Posted by CameraGuy

I once had someone from CO tell me that with a straight face.

I had a gate agent tell me this once, but it was more in a joking manner and not seriously. (I'd asked about the waitlist, not knowing I was about to fly on a jungle jet)