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Delta Adds Daily Flight to Orlando, Fla., From Chattanooga, Tenn., Airport

Posted on: Tuesday, 16 August 2005, 09:00 CDT

Aug. 16--Philip Wilson, of Chattanooga, said he flies to Orlando, Fla., on business frequently, and a new nonstop flight between the cities could save him time.

"I usually have a couple hours layover in Atlanta," Mr. Wilson said.

Starting Oct. 24, Mr. Wilson and other travelers to Florida will get a more direct route when a daily nonstop flight to Orlando is added at Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport on a Delta Connection carrier.

Delta spokesman Patrick T. Robinson said affiliate Freedom Airlines will fly a 50-seat regional jet on the flight. Between now and Sept. 16, a 14-day advance purchase ticket used between Oct. 24 and Dec. 5 will cost $248 roundtrip before taxes, he said.

The nearly 90-minute trip will leave Chattanooga at 2:55 p.m. daily, according to the airline. The return flight departs Orlando at 12:50 p.m.

Mr. Wilson said whether he uses the flight will depend on if the schedule suits his own.

"It would depend on what time my meeting starts," he said.

The service will be the airport's second effort in a decade at making nonstops to Orlando work.

In late 1996 and early 1997, low-fare carrier AirTran Airways offered flights between the cities, but it stopped after about four months, saying passenger traffic was too low.

This time, airport officials said they will provide a $50,000 incentive to the air carrier for the service.

Mike Landguth, Airport Authority president, said AirTran flew 126-seat jets while the Delta Connection carrier will fly a smaller plane and make it easier to attain profitability.

"It's a great opportunity for us to get into that market," he said.

Dan Jacobson, the Authority's chairman, said Chattanoogans need to use the service to keep it.

"It saves you something you can't replace -- time," he said.

While Delta prepares to add the new flight, the carrier is struggling to stay out of bankruptcy and its stock price tumbled again Monday on new concerns. Authority member Gene Veazey asked Mr. Landguth about the airport's financial exposure to a Delta bankruptcy filing as the airline carries more passengers out the airport than any carrier.

Mr. Landguth said it depends on what the airline does.

"They're trying to come up with a solution," he said.

Mayor Ron Littlefield said in a statement that air service is expanding out of the airport with new flights slated for Orlando and Houston. Flights also recently started to Dallas-Fort Worth, he said.

Hamilton County Commissioner Charlotte Vandergriff said, "I can't emphasize enough the importance of air service."

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Copyright (c) 2005, Chattanooga Times/Free Press, Tenn.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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DAL, AAI,

Source: Chattanooga Times/Free Press

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