Low-fare Skybus to serve airport near High Point
Should reduce cost of attending market for some
Thomas Russell -- Furniture Today, October 24, 2007
HIGH POINT — High Point Market Authority officials applauded an announcement this week that low-fare carrier Skybus Airlines will locate a hub at the Piedmont Triad International Airport in nearby Greensboro, N.C.
The airline, which has a limited number of seats available on each flight at $10 each, has offered one daily flight between Greensboro and Columbus, Ohio, since May and will add flights to seven other cities in early 2008.
Starting Jan. 6, it will offer a second flight to Columbus along with daily flights to Boston via Portsmouth International Airport in Portsmouth, N.H.; Jacksonville/Daytona Beach, Fla., via St. Augustine Airport, and Punta Gorda/Fort Meyers, Fla., via Charlotte County Airport.
On Jan. 17, it will add daily nonstop service to Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss.; and the Hartford, Conn.-Springfield, Mass. area via the Westover Metropolitan Airport in Chicopee, Mass.
Starting Feb. 25, Skybus will add daily nonstop service to Los Angeles via the Bob Hope International Airport in Burbank, Calif.
High Point Market Authority President and CEO Brian Casey called the announcement “very good news for the High Point Market.” He told Furniture/Today that the new discount airline has the potential to benefit some 22,836 retailers.
In particular, he said, it could “be very helpful to small-and-medium-sized dealers looking for cost-effective ways to get to market.” He added, “We finally have a low-cost carrier that will link the Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point area with Florida, the Gulf Coast, East Coast and the West Coast.”
He also noted that until now, flying from the West Coast has been expensive for buyers wanting to attend the market.
“Obviously, it is extremely important to us to continue to attract buyers from medium and small businesses across the country, many of whom are very price sensitive when it comes to business travel,” Casey said in a statement. “We see the Skybus business model as a perfect fit for this region and our market, and we welcome the news not only because it will provide low-cost access to the Market, but because of the time-savings and added convenience buyers traveling here will enjoy thanks to our close proximity to the Piedmont Triad International Airport.”
In Greensboro, observers also said the presence of a discount airline such as Skybus also could lead other airlines serving the airport to reduce their fares.
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Low-fare airline could help H.P.
Oct 28, 2007
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