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Commentary
Airport growth needs support
Published:
Monday, October 6, 2003
Thursday, a blue, white and orange Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737 jet airliner touched down at St. Cloud Regional Airport. The airplane pulled up to the airport's terminal, 165 sun-and-fun-seeking passengers boarded and with the whine of jet engines, the flight was on its way, nonstop from St. Cloud to Laughlin, Nev. for the weekend.
The occasion was historic because it was the first time such a thing had happened in St. Cloud. Sun Country's special weekend vacation flight marked the beginning of jet airline service to central Minnesota. While St. Cloud Regional Airport has seen regularly scheduled airline flights for about 10 years, air service has always been aboard Mesaba Airlines-operated turboprop aircraft. Those flights now run to and from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, giving travelers a convenient, cost-effective way to start a multi-leg trip. They offer passengers few options, however.
Sun Country's trip from St. Cloud to Laughlin certainly does not fall under the classification of "regularly scheduled service," considering that the next such trip is tentatively scheduled for the spring. But it has already make an excellent point: Passengers filled every one of the 165 seats on the Sun Country jet.
The city of St. Cloud has been working to attract additional airline service to St. Cloud Regional Airport for several years. A control tower set to open in January will make flying into, out of and around the airport safer for private and commercial traffic. The airport administration also estimates that currently only about 20 percent of potential central Minnesota passengers use the airport.
Yet Sun Country's flight was filled. This should send a clear message to the airlines: The St. Cloud market is ripe for growth.
City officials plan to meet with American Airlines and United Airlines this month to discuss the possibility of bringing nonstop flights from Chicago or Denver to St. Cloud. This is a big step in the right direction. Expanded airline service to St. Cloud means more business opportunities, more promotion of tourism and more options for travelers - including students. Spring breakers, especially, would benefit from local jet service to Chicago or Denver, as would the local travel agencies who send students from SCSU, St. Cloud Technical College and CSB/SJU on trips.
But St. Cloud Regional Airport cannot remain competitive in attracting airlines and servicing the region if it is not allowed to grow. Fortunately, St. Cloud city leaders have already proved that they are committed to keeping the airport economically viable. Now, it's time for the central Minnesota community to get on board and show its support. Increased air traffic and noise are small cons in the face of the impact the airport has - and will continue to have - on the region.
Sun Country has "opened the jetway" to a new era of travel in central Minnesota. If this weekend's 165 Laughlin vacationers were any indication, the future looks chock-full of packed flights.
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