Delta providing local service without subsidy

Columbia announced Monday that Delta Air Lines will continue to provide service to Columbia Regional Airport without a federal subsidy because of the success of the carrier’s roundtrip flights to Memphis, Tenn.
The airline’s existing contract, which provides a federal subsidy through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Essential Air Service Program, is set to expire at the end of August. On March 30, the Department terminated the carrier selection process for the Columbia EAS contract for the period between September 2010 and August 2012 and named Delta as the commercial carrier for that period, according to a city press release. Delta’s decision to operate without a subsidy keeps it from having to bid against other carriers for a new Columbia EAS contract.
Airport Advisory Board member Greg Cecil said the decision is great for the region’s airport and great for Delta. While he said he doesn’t know what kind of discussions the airline had with the Department of Transportation, the fact that Delta offered to provide the service without a subsidy probably made the agency “jump at it.”
The EAS subsidy program was established in response to airline deregulation in the late 1970s so that carriers could continue to provide service in unprofitable, non-hub areas.
“This is a really big deal,” said City Manager Bill Watkins in a statement. “It means that Delta has enough confidence in the business generated at the airport that it is willing to operate without a public subsidy. The region’s support for the airport has created a very favorable outcome, and now we have certainty about who will provide our air service.”
Delta began providing service to Columbia in August 2008. In 2009, 24,843 passengers went through Columbia Regional, according to the city’s release.
City Council heard a report Monday night on a program to encourage airlines to service Columbia by waiving certain fees. The council took no action, however, because it didn’t want to provide incentives to Delta’s competitors since the airline has offered to continue operations in the region.
Because Delta will have the new EAS contract, no other airlines would be eligible for a federal subsidy. Delta does not offer flights from Columbia to the Midwest hubs of Dallas and Chicago, and that is one of the comments Cecil said he hears from airport customers. The Manhattan, Kan., airport recently secured a provider offering flights to Dallas, but it took a large state subsidy to finalize the contract, Cecil said. The advisory board is still looking for opportunities to expand Columbia’s service while continuing to support Delta’s commitment to the region, he said.
“We want to wait and see what happens with Delta because we really value their relationship with us,” Cecil said.