The Asheville Regional Airport Authority (ARAA) announced this week that AirTran Airways, which was recently acquired by Southwest Airlines, will be discontinuing service from Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) effective January 6, 2012.

AirTran Airways has served AVL since June 2009 with non-stop flights to Orlando, FL, and with service to Tampa, FL, since February 2010. ARAA data indicates that AirTran accounted for approximately 8% of the airport’s passenger traffic in 2010.

“Thanks to the support of this community, the AirTran routes have been successful, and we had high hopes that Southwest Airlines would choose to continue serving Western North Carolina residents,” said Lew Bleiweis, A.A.E., airport director. “While we are disappointed with the decision, we also have confidence in the other six airlines serving our airport and in the loyalty of our passengers.”

AVL is served by low-cost carrier Vision Airlines, which also offers non-stop flights to Florida, as well as by American Airlines/American Eagle (seasonal), Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, United Airlines and US Airways.

“Our goal is to continue increasing the ease of travel from AVL, especially through the addition of new non-stop destinations and competitively-priced fares,” said Bleiweis. “We meet regularly with airlines to advocate for these things, and are optimistic about the future of air travel for our region.”
 

The Asheville Regional Airport Authority (ARAA) Board swore in its newly appointed At-Large board member during its regularly-scheduled February meeting.

Bill Moyer, a resident of Henderson County, was selected by the current board members to serve the remainder of the four-year term vacated by Chuck McGrady in February.

A native of Pennsylvania, Moyer spent his career as a partner in the Philadelphia law firm of Dechert, Price & Rhoads, practicing corporate, securities and utility law, and as CEO of C-TEC, a public telecommunications company. Moving with his family to Henderson County in 1990, Bill became active in community affairs and served on numerous civic and charitable boards. Bill served on the Henderson County Board of Commissioners for twelve years, eight as chair. He currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Board of Pardee Hospital.

“We are pleased to welcome Mr. Moyer to the Authority Board,” said David Hillier, Chairman. “Thanks to the hard work of our board and staff, we have celebrated some great achievements of late and I look forward to continuing that trend with Bill and the rest of the board in the coming months.”

The ARAA Board has overall financial and policy-making responsibility for the airport and is comprised of seven members. Three Airport Authority members are appointed by the Asheville City Council, three by Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, and the seventh is appointed by the six as the At-Large member from Buncombe or Henderson County. Authority meetings are currently held on the second Friday of the month and are open to the public.
 

Asheville Regional Airport Authority (ARAA) is pleased to announce new non-stop service on US Airways to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) beginning May 8, 2011.

The flight will operate on Sundays, with varying departure times—all morning flights.

This will be the third destination offered by US Airways, which currently operates several flights a day to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport (CLT), and one daily flight to LaGuardia International Airport (LGA).

Also in May, AirTran will return its non-stop flight to Tampa International Airport (TPA), and will offer the flight four days each week on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 3:20 p.m. and Sundays at 2:37 p.m. The Tampa flight, previously a seasonal service, is now scheduled as a year-round service, and joins Orlando as the second non-stop destination provided by AirTran.

On June 9, American Airlines returns its seasonal flight from Asheville Regional Airport to Dallas Ft. Worth International Airport (DFW). The service will be daily, with a 4:30 p.m. departure time.
 

Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) was awarded the General Aviation Project of the Year by the Southeast Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives at their annual meeting in Mobile, Ala. last week.

AVL was recognized for its creative use of a regional partnership to efficiently, effectively and safely conduct a major fill project that created 15 usable acres of aeronautical use land on the airport campus, on the north side near Interstate 26. The fill project combined the resources and talents of multiple organizations to design and undertake an EPA-encouraged beneficial use program utilizing coal combustion by-products (called CCBs) for engineered-fill material. The project allowed the airport to import 840,000 cubic yards of CCBs from the nearby Progress Energy electric generating plant. This eliminated the need to utilize the earth's natural resources while creating the additional acres of buildable land - all at a significant cost savings to the airport.

In the process of generating electricity, coal-fired power plants such as Progress Energy's Asheville Plant, generate CCBs. As part of Progress Energy's commitment to the environment, the company seeks to reuse the by-products in a safe and responsible manner. The airport's fill project - which not only provided a location for the CCBs, but also did so while exceeding recommended environmental and engineering requirements - was a perfect match for the reuse of the material.

"The partnership between the Airport and Progress Energy was beneficial for us both. Progress Energy found an environmentally-sound way to reuse the coal combustion by-product, and the Airport saved millions of dollars in costs that traditional fill methods would have required," said Lew Bleiweis, A.A.E., Airport Director. "The airport industry recognized that our project was a creative solution for all involved, and I am pleased with their recognition of our project."

The Southeast Chapter of the American Association of Airport Executives consists of over 450 members from 12 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The association is guided by a nine-member Board of Directors, and is committed to promoting the professionalism and financial stability in the administration of airports. 

Today is the big day -- we are celebrating fifty years! When we realized 2011 was going to be the airport's 50th year, a question emerged: Is this a birthday or an anniversary? Birthdays, we concluded, honor the one who is celebrating. Anniversaries, on the other hand, commemorate a relationship. Go ahead and call us cheesy, but we believe this celebration isn't just about the airport -- it's about the community's loyalty to AVL, and vice versa. Relationships, as we all know, take a certain amount of work, dedication and mutual support. Through the years, we've done our best to give this community what it needs, and you, Western North Carolina, have supported us in return. On that note, can we just say that we love how enthusiastic you are about Asheville Airport? If we continue with the analogy of a relationship, we can honestly say that it feels like our first months together, and we're definitely feeling the love. You compliment us nearly every day on how good we look, how you like us better than other airports, and how you can't wait to see us again. The feeling is mutual, and we'd just like to say that, without you, we wouldn't be who we are today. We also hear your constructive feedback on the areas in which we could use improvement, and we appreciate that too. So Western North Carolina, thanks for the love. Here's to us, and to the next fifty years!

We’re working like mad to pull together the most unique exhibit the airport Art Gallery has ever seen, and you’re about to get a sneak peek. Opening Tuesday, June 7^th, the exhibit features the history of the Asheville Regional Airport and its place in culture through the decades since it first opened in 1961. Here are some teasers to pique your curiosity. Enjoy, and be sure to stop by to explore the exhibit! [gallery link="file" columns="4"]

Allow us to introduce you to our favorite new TV channel. Actually, it’s not a channel at all, but rather a unique collection of content designed to give you—the airline passenger—information specific to your travel destination (or layover location) while you wait to board your flight. Now featured in the gate areas of our terminal are three Prodigiq Airport TV Network televisions that feature programming directly related to the destination in which you’re about to land. For example, if you’re waiting for a flight to Orlando on AirTran, you might see information about dining or attractions, or the current weather conditions, in Orlando. You’ll also get real-time flight information, breaking news, business and sports news—even cooking demonstrations. The three flat-screen monitors cover all seven gates—two near gates 1–3, and one near gates 4–7. One of our favorite features is the ability to choose where you sit and how much audio you hear as a result. Pick a front-row, center spot and you’ll be treated to audio from multiple speakers. Select a seat a few rows away and you’ll have enough quiet to read a book and still glance up to catch headlines. The audio has also been carefully set at a level that allows passengers to hear the all-important airline announcements. It’s not just the programming we’re excited about, but also the power-saving schedule that turns the screens on for the first passengers arriving at the airport in the morning, and shuts them down between flights and for the night, after the last flight arrives. As we develop more tech-centric services for passengers, this system can easily be integrated with airport messaging, ADA-compliant messaging and airline announcements, all in the name of helping you take the easy way out.

Last week’s announcement by the Department of Transportation regarding airline passenger rights was chock full of good news for travelers. The new regulations—which take effect in August—not only make air travel easier, but also provide solutions for a few common-sense issues we’ve been hearing about here in “airport world” for a while. Here’s a breakdown of the rules: 1)      Airlines will be required to disclose, in plain view on their websites, any possible additional fees. This means when you book your ticket online, there won’t be any surprises. Everything from bag fees and cancellation or change fees, to meals, upgrades—even government taxes and fees—must be presented clearly. 2)      If your bag is lost, the airline must refund your baggage fee. We can probably all agree this just makes sense. 3)      If you’ve ever been bumped from a flight involuntarily because of an overbooked plane, you’ll appreciate this one: Increased compensation for involuntary bumping. The new rule increases the payment passengers may receive for both short and long delays. 4)      International flights by U.S. airlines—as well as by foreign airlines at U.S. airports—are now required to limit tarmac delays to four hours (with a few sensible exceptions for security and air traffic reasons). Passengers must also be provided food and water after the two-hour mark, plus the obvious necessities of working restrooms and medical care, if and when it’s needed. It’s great to glimpse some positive changes for airline passengers. From the customer service perspective, these regulations are a much needed (and, frankly, much overdue) improvement to the air travel industry, and we’ll be happy to see them take effect later this summer.

Dictionary.com defines spring like this: “the season between winter and summer.” Really? That’s it? Because it sure seems like it deserves a little more credit than simply an “in-between season.” Spring, from what we understand, is the season 96% of the population just can’t wait for (based on absolutely no empirical data but on the comments routinely heard around the airport, i.e. “Ugh, is it SPRING yet?!”). Spring carries with it not only warmer weather and the emergence of hibernating creatures and plant life, but also an energy all its own that motivates us humans to emerge from hibernation as well—to pry ourselves from our HDTVs and couch clothes and propel us into gardening gear, jogging suits and—we have to say it—airplanes! Spring fever, defined by the same source as a “…restless feeling commonly associated with the beginning of spring,” is in full-swing. And much like the groundhogs and black bears we’ve begun to see here in Western North Carolina (a few groundhogs have already been spotted at the airport exit off I-26), new airlines and flights are springing to life as well. Just yesterday we welcomed a new airline—Vision—with a ceremonial water arch (because watering things in the spring helps them grow?) which can fly you from Asheville to Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, in just over an hour and just under $90 each way. Bursting on the scene this spring is also the return of AirTran’s popular (and low cost!) non-stop flight to Tampa, Florida, PLUS new service to Philadelphia on US Airways. And in late spring, American Airlines is returning with service to Dallas/Ft. Worth. So get outside, get your lawn chores done, and then book yourself a little vacation. Let’s give spring the credit it deserves and make the most of this beautiful season!

It’s photo Friday at AVL and we found some fun stuff in our new restaurant and gift shop, Blue Ridge Trading + Tavern. Check it out! Grab and go newspapers... Mmm... pastries! Dozens of books. (Speaking of reading, check out the Read and Return program.) Plus some fun souvenirs!