Pittsburgh Reveals Incentives for 2014 Network Growth

Pittsburgh International Airport operator, the Allegheny County Airport Authority, has launched its 2014 Air Service Incentive Program for airlines. The company is again offering a range of incentives including the waiving of landing fees or increased marketing support to airlines that are willing to start service to a dozen destinations in the United States and Canada and eleven others across the Caribbean.

The target list is similar to that produced last year and has been collated from a survey of business travelers and travel planners, data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, and information from the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. It includes destinations that have been coveted for many years, but no longer includes of Nashville, as Southwest Airlines successfully started daily flights to the city in autumn 2013 with support from the last Air Service Incentive Program.

“These are important routes and we want to show the airlines that we have the market to sustain long-term service.  We believe that these incentives give the airlines an opportunity to serve the community at a lower initial risk and provides the region the chance to support them.”

Bradley Penrod
President and Chief Strategy Officer, Allegheny County Airport Authority

The list of destinations in North America includes Austin, Dallas Love Field, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, Seattle, and Tulsa in the US and Calgary in Canada. Myrtle Beach in the state of South Carolina is an addition to the 2014 list.

The list is once again dominated by San Diego and Seattle; two destinations that were regularly served up until 2007 before US Airways closed its hub in Piitsburgh. According to local sources cities such as New Orleans, Oklahoma City and Tulsa have been targeted because of the Marcellus Shale drilling boom in the region; Austin, is an in-demand destination for high-technology firms; Milwaukee is an important business market; while Myrtle Beach is becoming an increasingly popular leisure destination for US citizens.

“These are important routes and we want to show the airlines that we have the market to sustain long-term service. We believe that these incentives give the airlines an opportunity to serve the community at a lower initial risk and provides the region the chance to support them,” said Bradley Penrod, president and chief strategy officer, Allegheny County Airport Authority.

Alongside the North American markets some individual markets in the Caribbean and Latin America asre also included in the 2014 Air Service Incentive Program. Many of the destinations are open to incentive offerings even if served on a seasonal or less than daily schedule.

Airlines that are willing to offer at least five weekly flights to a destination on the target list qualifies for a waiver of all landing fees during the first year of operations and a 50 per cent reduction the second year. They are also eligible for marketing support over two years or as an alternative, the waiver of landing fees for an additional four months, but they must commit to operating the route for at least two years.

“As an origination and destination airport, with predictable costs and no slot restrictions, Pittsburgh International Airport can offer carriers a package of landing fees, marketing support and overnight parking waivers to begin service to these routes, which the community has indicated it will support,” added Penrod.

Alongside the Nashville link, Allegheny County Airport Authority also secured new direct scheduled links from Pittsburgh to two other destinations during 2013, according to schedule data from OAG Schedules Analyser. These comprised Houston Hobby and Palm Beach International both of which are also being served by Southwest Airlines.

The low-cost carrier is the third largest carrier at Pittsburgh International Airport with flights last year to 12 destinations, more than any other carrier – its sister carrier AirTran Airways also serves five markets and is the fifth largest operator from Pittsburgh. In the table below we look at scheduled capacity from the airport in 2013.

Meanwhile to further enhance the passenger experience, two permanent Global Entry kiosks will be installed at Pittsburgh International Airport this spring by US Customs and Border Protection. The Global Entry kiosks will allow expedited clearance for pre-approved, low risk international travelers entering the United States and will reduce the arrivals procedure. Arriving passengers will be able to process their entry into the United States through the kiosks rather than waiting in line for a Customs and Border Protection officer.

The two new kiosks will be installed before Delta Air Lines’ Paris flight resumes on April 27, 2014. The kiosks will also be used for arriving passengers from the Caribbean including existing flights from Punta Cana, Dominican Republic and Cancun, Mexico.