Raleigh Losing More Flights But Still Expanding
Thanks to Midwest Airlines, you can now add Milwaukee, Wisconsin to the list of non-stop flights Raleigh-Durham International Airport will lose this year.
Earlier this week Midwest Airlines announced it plans to end regional service between it’s hub in Milwaukee and Raleigh-Durham. The company is in the middle of a major restructuring that goes hand in hand with the price of jet fuel that is killing the entire industry. But The Brew City isn’t the only RDU causality of late.
Other airlines have stopped non-stop service to other cities this year including San Antonio, New Orleans, Los Angeles and some flights to Orlando. If you also include the reduction of service other airlines are implementing, you can definitely tell times are not good at RDU…or are they? Despite the bad times in the industry, Raleigh-Durham International continues to expand terminal two.
This reminds me of what happened in St. Louis several years ago. Lambert International was a crowded Midwest hub prior to September 11th. Two runways were not enough, so the city asked the government for hundreds of millions of dollars to build another one. Years later, the St. Louis airport has its new runway, but almost no planes to land on it. The airport’s main hub airline, Trans World Airlines, was bought out by American Airlines. After the takeover, American slashed service in St. Louis and left the airport and new runway nearly vacant.
Now, Raleigh-Durham International could be faced with the same fate. Years ago when the airport sought to expand the terminal, times were good and gas was cheap. Fast forward to expensive oil and not as many airlines flying into the capital city and you may have a brand new terminal with a bunch of empty gates.
Posted in Aviation, Around Town, Travel
