American Airlines' decision to replace 37-seat Dash 8 turboprop aircraft with 50-seat regional jets on its eight daily flights connecting Yeager Airport with airports serving Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Charlotte, North Carolina, would potentially make an additional 28,000 seats a year available to Charleston area travelers, bringing in more revenue for the airport and the communities it serves, according to Terry Sayre, Yeager's executive director.
The upgrade, announced on Wednesday and set to begin on June 2, is a trial run, currently scheduled to end on Aug. 21.
"But we are confident we can show the airline we can fill enough of the additional seats to make the change permanent," Sayre said.
Boardings at Yeager have increased in five of the last seven months, including the first three months of 2017, despite having the number of available seats decrease by four percent, he added. Between Jan. 1 and March 31 of this year, a total of 45,776 passengers have boarded commercial aircraft at Yeager Airport. The current upturn in boardings is the longest and steadiest since early 2012. Sayre said it is the result of a marketing campaign in which bargain fares and destinations accessible from Yeager are discussed during television news programs by National Travel executive Ted Lawson and Yeager Marketing Director Mike Plante.
American Airlines' use of regional jets instead of turboprop aircraft will reduce travel time to the three cities it serves from Yeager, and provide passengers with more comfort, according to Lawson, who spoke during Wednesday's announcement of the airline's equipment upgrade. Flights between Charleston and Washington, D.C.'s Reagan National Airport will be about 30 minutes shorter than they are now, Lawson said, adding that the regional jets fly on higher routes, reducing passengers' exposure to turbulence.
Sayre said a meeting arranged by U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va, late last year between officials from American Airlines and the Charleston airport led directly to the upgrade.
"This is a game changer for Yeager Airport," said Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper. "Regional jets not only offer more seats, but they are a huge step up in comfort, convenience and reliability."
Reach Rick Steelhammer at rsteelhammer@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-5169, or follow @rsteelhammer on Twitter.