With Space To Spare, Pittsburgh International Draws Corporate Jet Carrier

Pittsburgh International Airport’s status as a former hub facility with space to spare helped draw OneJet, a new corporate jet carrier seeking to gain a foothold inside Concourse D.

“That’s one of the reasons Pittsburgh is one of the top five cities we put in place early on,” said CEO Matthew Maguire. “We see a bigger vision for it beyond the user service.”

OneJet, catering to business travelers on seven-seat Hawker 400s, launched between Milwaukee and Indianapolis in April, and Pittsburgh this month. A fourth destination will be announced within two months. Down the road, OneJet plans to add crews and maintenance operations in Pittsburgh.

OneJet’s business model focuses on gate-to-gate travel between midsized cities, allowing direct flights to destinations that otherwise involve lengthy layovers. A trip to Indianapolis with a connection may take 4 ¹⁄₂ hours, compared with the about 60-minute service on OneJet

Read more: http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/8416213-74/onejet-pittsburgh-service#ixzz3bGO3ekH3
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Pittsburgh International Struggling Despite The Region’s Robust Economy

FAA Airport Diagram of KPIT (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald describes Pittsburgh International Airport as an economic engine for Western Pennsylvania.

Yet while Fitzgerald points to improved employment, production and tourism as signs of the region’s economic vitality, growth at Pittsburgh International is stalled.

“I can’t explain it,” Fitzgerald said of the incongruity between the region’s surging economy and an airport that is scuffling in its core business of flying.

The airport was on pace through November to post its lowest annual passenger total since opening in 1992, according to the latest data. It recently learned that 600 airline jobs will vanish when the new American Airlines, created through a merger with US Airways, closes a flight operations center in Moon by next year. An unused section of one concourse in the $1 billion airport remains walled-off. The airport doesn’t have a CEO.

Read more: http://triblive.com/business/headlines/5501301-74/airport-pittsburgh-fitzgerald#ixzz2sHkI4LvV
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AirTran Discontinuing Service At Lehigh Valley International Airport

Image via Wikipedia

AirTran Airways and Southwest Airlines confirmed plans to combine operations at 22 airports and will discontinue service at Lehigh Valley International Airport and five other operations, LVIA officials announced in a news release.

The service will be discontinued at LVIA effective Aug. 12, 2012. LVIA officials said all ticketed passengers, passengers holding reservations, or passengers wanting to make reservations for flights to or from LVIA have no need to alter their travel plans.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-lehigh-valley-air-tran-20120120,0,7458520.story