"North Carolina airport courts Midway Airlines"

Thursday, December 28, 2000

Moore County Airport courts Midway
Moore County tourism officials want to add the carrier for service to
Raleigh.
By Claudia Madeley
Fayetteville (NC) Observer-Times


SOUTHERN PINES -- Tourism leaders are trying to entice Midway Airlines Corp.
to begin offering flights to Raleigh at the Moore County Airport in Southern
Pines.

Currently, the airport has only one carrier, U.S. Airways and Express, which
offers several daily flights in and out of Charlotte.

The earliest a new airline service could possibly develop would be in time
for next spring's U.S. Women's Open golf championship in Southern Pines.
Work on the airport is under way to accommodate another carrier in the
spring.

Robert R. Ferguson III, chairman of Midway Airlines, met with local
officials on Dec. 20 at the airline's corporate headquarters in Morrisville.
Officials from the Moore County Airport, the Sandhills Area Chamber of
Commerce and the Convention and Visitor's Bureau attended.

"It was a very productive meeting. We came back with a list of things to
 do," said Caleb Miles, president and chief executive officer of the Village
of Pinehurst, Southern Pines, and Aberdeen Area Visitors and Convention
Bureau.

Miles said Ferguson asked for more information, but he made no commitment at
the hour-long meeting. The airline must decide if the service would make
sense financially.

"They don't have idle aircraft. They would have to purchase or lease new
aircraft," he said.

Last week, Ferguson declined to comment on the meeting.

Moore County is not the only airport trying to woo Midway. Fayetteville has
been attempting for some time to lure the carrier to its airport, said Dawn
Gibson, a travel agent and past member of the Fayetteville Airport
Commission.

"It's ironic. We've been trying to get them for a couple of years," she
said. "It is a constant, ongoing battle trying to get additional carriers
and better the service. Midway was looking at both cities."

Currently, the Fayetteville carriers are U.S. Airways and Express and Delta
with flights to and from Charlotte and Atlanta.

However, an estimated 30-40 percent of Fayetteville air travelers drive to
Raleigh, because Raleigh is perceived to have lower fares, which is not
always correct, Gibson said.

Cindy Little, manager of Fairway Travel in Southern Pines, said many flights
on U.S. Airways at the Moore County Airport fill up very quickly.

"We've been saying for years that we need more flights or bigger planes.
Travelers have had to change their dates because they couldn't get out of
Southern Pines or drive to Fayetteville, Raleigh and sometimes Charlotte,
she said.

Miles said one advantage to having Midway would be increased competition.
About 15 to 18 percent of Moore County's 1.1 million visitors fly in now;
the remainder drive here, according to Miles. With 720 holes of golf,
tourism is a $257 million industry, ranking ninth in the state in travel
expenditures by visitors.

Stephen Boyd, manager of communications at Pinehurst Resort where the 1999
U.S. Open was played, said Midway Airline service would offer convenience.

"North Carolina is our single, biggest market, and we discourage the use of
rentals (cars), because our guests won't need them since our transportation
department will take them wherever they need to go," he said.

The U.S. Women's Open will be at Pine Needles in Southern Pines in late May
and early June.

"Anytime you have a first class event such as an Open championship,
everybody in the entire area reaps the benefit of that wonderful event,"
Boyd said.

But Midway wants to know how much business to expect at the Moore County
Airport, not just from big events, but the routine travel demands. So, the
Convention and Visitors Bureau will survey local corporations about their
plans, Miles said.

It may spearhead the creation of golf packages with travel agents to combine
the cost of Midway airfare, lodging and golf courses and share the cost of
marketing them to the public.

It is also considering hiring a consultant to provide independent data to
Midway. That cost might be shared with Moore County government and the
airport authority, Miles said.

U.S. Airways has had a steady increase in air traffic since it began service
in the early 1990s at Moore County Airport. It discontinued its one daily
flight to Raleigh, he said.

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