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AirTran Airways, the low-fare Atlanta-based airline, said it will add nonstop flights between Dallas/Fort Worth and its growing Milwaukee hub, expanding North Texas’ connections across the Midwest and into the Northeast, and heightening what one fare watcher dubbed “The Battle of Milwaukee.”
AirTran said it will launch two daily nonstops starting April 6, joining American Eagle and Midwest Airlines on the route. Southwest Airlines also launched service at Milwaukee earlier this week, but cannot offer nonstops to its Dallas Love Field base because of federal Wright Amendment restrictions.The additions come as AirTran expands the Milwaukee airport, drawing traffic from Wisconsin and the Chicago area.AirTran also announced Wednesday it’s taking on SkyWest Airlines as a marketing partner; SkyWest will offer regional jet flights starting next month between Milwaukee and six cities: Pittsburgh, Pa.; St. Louis; Akron/Canton, Ohio; Indianapolis; Des Moines, Iowa; and Omaha, Neb.Fliers on AirTran can also take advantage of the airline’s nonstops between Milwaukee and northeastern cities such as Boston and Baltimore/Washington. AirTran currently offers nonstops between DFW and its Atlanta home, Orlando, Fla., and BWI. AirTran will serve the DFW route using its Boeing 717 twinjet aircraft, successor to the ubiquitous McDonnell Douglas MD-80 workhorse that dots many airline fleets.Christopher White, an AirTran spokesman, said the SkyWest partnership is important, because AirTran isn’t scheduled to take another new aircraft delivery until 2011.“This frees our aircraft to srve other destinations, such as Dallas/Fort Worth,” he said.AirTran now serves Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and St. Louis from Milwaukee, and will switch that service to SkyWest, White said.White said Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport is one of AirTran’s top four hubs, and will make up 11 percent of the airline’s traffic next year, up from 8-9 percent now.“In addition to Milwaukee itself, there’s connectivity around the Midwest,” he said.Mike Boyd, a Colorado aviation analyst, said Milwaukee “is going to be a serious connecting hub.” There’s also “some business” in the local market that airlines can serve, and “you draw from Milwaukee and the northern collar counties of Chicago as well.”Tom Parsons, CEO of the Arlington-based Bestfares.com, said the DFW route is a logical extension of AirTran’s Milwaukee hub.AirTran tried unsuccessfully to buy Midwest Airlines, he noted, and, when that failed, AirTran “just went into Milwaukee and started matching them flight for flight.”The DFW route also is a shot at Southwest, Parsons said, because “Southwest can’t do anything about it” until all Wright Amendment restrictions on flights from Love Field expire in several years. Southwest’s itineraries to Milwaukee from Love stop or connect at airports such as Kansas City, Mo.Beyond Milwaukee’s value as a connecting hub, Parsons said the airport also has become a viable secondary airport to the Chicago market.“For years, people from Wisconsin had to go to Chicago” to fly inexpensively, he said. “Now, because of the battle of Milwaukee, it’s sometimes $70-$100 cheaper to fly out of Milwaukee. And I suspect the people of Chicago are finding that out.”Joe Lopano, DFW’s executive vice president of marketing and terminal management, said in a statement that “AirTran’s new flight to Milwaukee is an outstanding new addition to the service DFW is able to offer the North Texas traveler. AirTran has a proven track record of success, serving more than 600,000 passengers a year at DFW.”AirTran is one of the few airlines that’s enjoying profitability, and has been touting services such as on-board WIFI on all of its planes – prices range up to $9.95 - and free onboard XM satellite radio.Scott Nishimura, (817) 390-7808
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