How Salem, Oregon, got its commercial flight groove back. (Hint: $$)
Over the past few years, many small regional airports across the country lost some or all of their commercial flights due to pilot shortages and other challenges facing the airline industry.
But Oregon's Salem Municipal Airport (SLE), just 50 miles south of Portland and 2 miles from downtown Salem, is bucking the trend by bringing back commercial air service after a hiatus of 15 years.
Starting Thursday, budget carrier Avelo Airlines will begin flying between Oregon's capital city of Salem and Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) twice a week. The nonstop service will operate on Thursdays and Sundays.
The inaugural flight will be marked with commemorative boarding passes, greetings from airline officials and "lots of fanfare," Avelo spokesperson Courtney Goff said.
A day later, on Oct. 6, Avelo will kick off twice-weekly flights between Salem and Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR). These flights will begin operating on Fridays and Mondays and then shift to Thursdays and Sundays on Nov. 2. Both routes will be served by Avelo's Boeing Next-Generation 737 aircraft.
Although there hasn't been true commercial air service at Salem Municipal Airport since 2008, McNary Field, as it is also known, is no ghost town.
Related: Avelo adds 3 new cities to its route map, but cuts 2 others
The airport is home to an Army National Guard base and serves general aviation, business and military flights to the tune of 45,000 aircraft operations a year, SLE airport manager John Paskell said. The B-17 Alliance Museum and Hangar, where a World War II bomber is being restored, is on the edge of the airfield. The popular Flight Deck Restaurant & Lounge sits adjacent to the runway and has a robust fly-in clientele.
However, it has been a challenge to get and keep commercial air service for Salem.
United Airlines, which began flying to Salem in the 1940s, last served the city in 1980, according to Salem's Statesman Journal. Regional carrier Air Oregon (later acquired by Horizon Air) offered scheduled passenger service to several cities in the 1980s.
But the last true commercial service to Salem ended in late 2008, when Delta Air Lines pulled its twice-daily flights to Salt Lake City after just a year and a half. For a few months in 2011, tiny commuter carrier SeaPort Airlines buzzed between Salem and Newport, Oregon.
"Had the economy not tanked in 2008, [Delta Air Lines] probably would still be here," said Tim Hay, president of Fly Salem Foundation, the local nonprofit devoted to reinstating commercial flights. "Having air service in Salem brings a huge economic impact in the area, and seeing Delta drop out set Salem back."
Undaunted, the foundation and other parts of Salem's business and tourism community have been working for years to try to restore commercial air service.
Related: 7 reasons to fly from smaller airports if you want to save time and money
"We originally were seeking legacy carriers that would connect to a hub," Hay said.
The group's initial efforts focused on getting Alaska Airlines to fly between Salem and Seattle or getting United Airlines to fly from Salem to San Francisco or Denver. Then, it shifted its focus toward Avelo.
"Over time, we saw how successful the ultra-low-cost carriers were in serving alternate airports in major markets and we began to focus our efforts there," Hay said. "With Avelo having a great west coast presence and in a growth mode, Salem fit nicely into their strategy."
Avelo was interested, but as with the Delta Air Lines and SeaPort Airlines flights in past years, subsidies and grants were key in landing the new service.
To accommodate commercial air service, Salem's General Fund contributed about $1.8 million toward terminal renovations, as well as additional funds to hire new employees, Paskell said. Funds went to prepare the space for Transportation Security Administration baggage and passenger screening equipment, security access controls and cameras, about 100 new seats for the small gate area, and to spruce up the small lobby and bag claim area.
"Avelo aircraft have between 147-189 seats per flight, so we'll likely need a terminal expansion in the very near future if Avelo survives and thrives," Paskell said.
The city has waived some fees for Avelo and secured an $850,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Small Community Air Development program for minimum revenue guarantees; it also secured community pledges of $350,000 for a total of $1.2 million in support of Avelo's startup operations.
"The minimum revenue guarantee is a fund to backfill potential shortfalls in the airline's revenue during the first two years of operation," Hay said. "If the actual passenger ticket revenue falls short of the target revenue minimum, then the fund reimburses the airline on a quarterly basis."
The local tourism organization, Travel Salem, has vowed to support the new air service; it'll produce "a robust marketing plan" promoting inbound and outbound service between Salem and both Las Vegas and Burbank, the agency's deputy marketing manager, Kara Kuh, said. The plan includes digital ads, billboards, radio advertising and other tactics to raise awareness of the new service and to encourage ticket sales.
But after two years, when the subsidies run out, "the only way the service will stay is if the local community uses the service and changes their travel habits," Hay said.
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