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New Airline in New Orleans
Date: Mar 30, 2005
Contributor: Kelly Schertz
New Airline Wants To Create Hub In New Orleans
A new airline could make Louisiana smaller and wealthier.
Louis Armstrong International Airport could become a regional transportation hub, making travel across the state much easier, officials said.
Currently, to get to Shreveport, travelers have to take a connecting flight from Houston.
A new airline, Direct Air, wants to offer nonstop flights to all major cities in Louisiana, as well as other cities in the U.S., Canada and Central America.
State Sen. Ken Hollis said the project has been in the works for six.
"I think today, if you want to fly to Shreveport, I don't know if you fly through Hong Kong, Dallas or Houston," Hollis said. "But I know it costs a lot and takes a long time to get there."
Direct Air would offer 57 round-trip flights a day to various cities. The new airline estimates it would create 2,500 new jobs.
With the loss of the Delta hub in Dallas-Fort Worth, many cities such as Shreveport and Monroe have lost vital links to air service.
Armstrong Director Roy Williams said New Orleans can handle the extra air traffic Direct Air would bring. He said the new airline could help grow business and the hospitality industry in the state.
"It's a pretty big state, and we've lacked internal air service for a long time," Williams said. "The Direct Air model can justify the spokes of service. It's the only way the other airports will get nonstop service to New Orleans, and the only way they'll get low-fare service."
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