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May 31, 2006
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May 31, 2006
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| Online Phonebook | Sandhills Guide | Business News | National News |
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BY SARA LINDAU: Staff Writer Delta Air Lines has lowered introductory fares for its new service to Moore County Airport, which begins June 22. The carrier announced Thursday new special round-trip prices for reservations made by June 13. The tickets would have to be used between June 22 and Nov. 12. Delta will offer flights to Moore County from its Atlanta hub during that period on a trial basis. The seasonal service is aimed primarily at golfers and tourists visiting the Pinehurst and Southern Pines area. It also hopes to attract business and local travelers. The seasonal service will resume in the spring of 2007 and run through mid-November, according to a contract between the Atlanta-based airline and Moore County Airport Authority. The service will operate during the busiest months of the county’s tourism season. Moore County Airport Manager Ron Maness said Thursday afternoon he was pleased with Delta’s announcement. “This is a message to people: Give the Delta service a chance,” he said. Maness had raised concerns with Delta representatives last week that the ticket prices listed on its Web site, delta.com, were too high. He said he told Delta’s director of revenue management that some fares were not competitive with other Delta fares to the same destination from other airports. “The good news is we had shared a problem with Delta and they responded quickly and willingly,” he said. Maness said he was already aware of the expensive fares before Andy Thomas of Pinehurst, a columnist for The Pilot and a frequent flyer, raised concerns about ticket prices in a May 17 column. These new introductory one-way fares start at $89 to such destinations as Jacksonville, Fla., Columbus, Ohio, and Kansas City. Other sample fares include $99 to Orlando and Tampa, Fla., and Atlanta; $109 to Seattle and Cleveland; $119 to Dallas, Newark, New York (LaGuardia), Chicago (O’Hare), Pittsburgh and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; $129 to Los Angeles; and $139 to Detroit and Ontario, Calif. All flights connect through Atlanta and require roundtrip purchase. The introductory fare tickets are available only on delta.com or from a travel agent, with additional taxes, fees, and restrictions applicable. Between June 22 and Nov. 12, Delta Connection carrier Atlantic Southeast Airlines will offer a daily roundtrip flight between Atlanta and the Moore County Airport six times a week using a 40-passenger CRJ 200 aircraft. Delta Connection Flight 4738 will leave Atlanta daily at 9:30 a.m., arriving at the Moore County Airport in Southern Pines at 10:45 a.m. The flight will leave the Moore County Airport at 11:10 a.m. and arrive in Atlanta at 12:28 p.m. “The entire region realizes the tremendous economic opportunities that lie ahead with the launch of Delta commercial air service in Pinehurst/Southern Pines this summer,” said Caleb Miles, president and CEO of the Pinehurst/Southern Pines Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Visitors from around the world will appreciate the convenience and excellent service they will be afforded in their travels to and from ‘The Home of American Golf’ via Delta Air Lines.” Maness said he began checking the delta.com Web site last weekend and found the fares much more reasonable and competitive. “They went beyond what we asked them to do,” he said, referring to the decision to lower introductory fares that Delta had announced in March. Those fares expired April 11. Few people knew of those fares because an initial announcement never stated a date that the introductory offer would begin or end. Moore County has been without a commercial passenger airline since April 2002 when Charlotte-based CC Air, flying as U.S. Airways Express terminated service in the wake of the 911 terrorist attacks and because of sluggish national economy. A volunteer task force spearheaded by Maness that also included Miles worked to recruit another carrier. Though Delta is in bankruptcy, company executives were extremely interested in starting service to Moore County, recognizing that there is a market here. Delta agreed to offer seasonal service on a trial basis for two consecutive years. The county offered considerable financial incentives to Delta to offer service. Supporters hope this schedule will be expanded if the service proves profitable to Delta. An earlier computer glitch occurred in March, shortly after Delta announced it would begin serving the Moore County Airport on a trial basis to destinations all over the United States. Customers accessing Delta’s published ticket and schedule information didn’t find any listings for the Moore County Airport connecting via Atlanta with the West Coast. When Maness learned about this, he called Atlanta, pointed out the problem, and the Delta program was adjusted to add the West Coast flight information.
Sara Lindau can be reached at 693-2473 or by e-mail at slindau@thepilot.com. |
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