Travel from Charleston to Las Vegas expected to surge

by George Hohmann

The number of travelers from Charleston's Yeager Airport to Las Vegas is expected to increase from 18,000 to nearly 30,000 a year with the addition of low-cost, direct air service.

Yeager Airport Director Rick Atkinson and Kanawha County Commission President Kent Carper announced Thursday that Southern Skyways will begin offering direct service to and from Las Vegas on March 11.

Carper said 18,000 people a year currently fly from Charleston to Las Vegas. "That will rise to the upper 20s to 30,000," Atkinson predicted. Las Vegas is already the fifth most popular destination for Yeager patrons, he said.

Southern Skyways is advertising one-way fares to or from Las Vegas as low as $169 each way. Atkinson said the other airlines that serve Yeager charge $550 to $700 round-trip.

There will be some effect on the prices other carriers charge "but not a lot," Atkinson predicted. "They might lower their prices a little bit." He explained that the legacy carriers "fly every day. And Las Vegas gets a lot of business and convention travelers." Those business and convention travelers tend to fly during the week; leisure travelers tend to make weekend trips.

 Atkinson predicted the Las Vegas flights will draw "people who wouldn't fly otherwise." Carper agreed. "I anticipate some folks coming to Yeager who have never been here before," he said.

Southern Skyways will use Boeing 757 aircraft configured for 176 passengers, spokesman Cary Evans said. There will be 20 business-class seats and 156 coach seats.

Atkinson pointed out that Southern Skyways does not require travelers to buy round-trip tickets. "You can buy one-way," he said. "You can buy a ticket with a hotel room and a rental car. Or just the ticket. They schedule flights for the days when people want to go. It's a very user-friendly product."

After flights from Charleston land in Las Vegas, the aircraft will go on to the Oakland, Calif., airport. That means travelers going to Oakland, San Francisco, the Napa Valley and Silicon Valley can book tickets and fly there with one stop without having to switch planes or baggage.

Evans said through travelers will be on the ground in Las Vegas for about an hour.

Carper said, "Flying a 757 with first class and ending up in California with one stop - we haven't had this opportunity at Yeager since..."

"Since ever," said Atkinson.

Carper said low-cost, convenient air service is a plus for everyone, even people who don't travel. "When fares are cheaper and service is better, it's better for the economy," he said.

Before Southern Skyways offered low-cost flights to Myrtle Beach, S.C., on a seasonal basis last summer, the only discount airline to ever operate out of Yeager was Independence Air.

Independence was the first low-fare carrier to serve West Virginia. It began flights linking Charleston and Washington Dulles in 2005. Yeager subsequently experienced a surge in passenger traffic. In January 2006, Flyi Inc., Independence Air's corporate parent, filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations.

Atkinson has figured that Independence Air saved the region's travelers about $25 million during the 17 months it served Yeager.

Carper said, "No one was any more disappointed than I was when we lost Independence Air. This (scheduled charter service to Las Vegas and Oakland) is part of what we need to do."

The Central West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau met at the airport just before Atkinson and Carper announced the new service. At that meeting, the bureau approved a policy that said air charter carriers that offer nonstop service from Charleston at least twice weekly to a destination not currently served my be eligible for up to $125,000 in marketing support.

Carper said that means the Southern Skyways service carries some risk. "We've guaranteed up to $125,000," he said. "We could lose that if the service results are not acceptable. I'll take that risk and be accountable for it."

Carper was asked what effect he thinks the Las Vegas service will have on Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center in Nitro.

"My job is not to be a full-time promoter of any particular group," he said. "Our responsibility is to the airport and the people in general.

"As a practical matter, they'll complement each other," he predicted.

Carper praised Atkinson, the Yeager Airport staff and Charleston Mayor Danny Jones for working together to obtain the service to Las Vegas and Oakland.