"Director weathered tough times at Illinois airport"

Sunday, October 22, 2006

Frankl weathered tough times at airport 
By TIM LANDIS
The Springfield (IL) State Journal-Register


The U.S. flag carefully folded in a glass and wood display case helps Eric
Frankl keep the airport business in perspective.
  
"It was flying over the airport on Sept. 11," said Frankl, executive
director of Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in Springfield.

The months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York and
Washington, D.C. roiled the airline industry, sending some carriers into
bankruptcy and bringing widespread service cutbacks at airports nationwide.

Springfield was not immune. When Frankl took the job of executive director
of the then-Capital Airport in April 2002, the airport had four carriers to
four airports - two to Chicago, one to St. Louis and one to Memphis, Tenn.

Ridership was on the increase after a decade of falling numbers. But Frankl
knew tough times were coming as a result of the travel slump that followed
the attacks.

"The fact was, it was just a question of how long it would take. If you had
a market that was marginal, it was over," Frankl said. "Sept. 11 made it
twice as hard. Nobody was interested in serving smaller markets. Everybody
lost some level of service industrywide."

Frankl, a native of Ohio, leaves Nov. 3 to take a job as assistant director
for the airport at the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority in Ohio. He and
wife, Linda, have commuted between Springfield and Columbus, Ohio, since
their marriage in January 2005. Linda Frankl is director of operations for
the Columbus airport

Frankl, 42, has presided over plenty of ups and downs in 41/2 years at
Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport. The name change from Capital Airport took
place in 2004 as part of preparations for the 200th anniversary celebration
of Abraham Lincoln's birth in 2009.

The bankruptcies of several carriers and cost-cutting forced reductions in
commuter service to smaller, regional airports such as Springfield. By early
2005, the airport was "down to two carriers, one to Chicago and one to St.
Louis. For a few weeks early this year, it appeared the community might be
left with only one airline, United Express to O'Hare International Airport
in Chicago. 

Passenger numbers have plummeted as a result of fewer flying choices.

Boardings of 51,706 through the end of September were down more than 17
percent compared to last year and on track for the third annual decline in a
row. As recently as 2003, boardings topped 123,000.

But as Frankl prepares to leave Springfield for a second time - he was
facilities manager in Springfield from 1995 to 1999 - he said he remains
confident the worst of the service cuts are behind the airport.

Convenience, especially with new security requirements at large airports,
has become the centerpiece of airport marketing campaigns.

"You can get in and get out of here without a lot of hassle. We market that
because it's true," Frankl said.

With the aid of airport incentives that include an agreement to take over
ground handling and baggage processing, Tennessee-based RegionsAir started
two flights daily this summer to Lambert International Airport in St. Louis.

RegionsAir took over AmericanConnection service that was on the verge of
ending when the former operator dropped flights in several markets,
including Springfield.

The past week also brought the announcement that Montana-based Big Sky
Airlines will start four flights daily on Dec. 3 to Midway Airport in
Chicago. The carrier flies a 19-passenger turboprop. Springfield has been
without Midway service since Chicago Express ATA pulled out of the market in
January 2005. 

Big Sky Airlines also was offered incentives intended to at least cover
costs for the first year.

But Frankl said the big break for local air service could come next spring,
when United Airlines is expected to begin non-stop jet service to
Washington, D.C. The federal government approved a $390,000 grant in August
to help pay start-up costs.

Another $975,000 in local contributions, primarily from the Springfield
Airport Authority, also will be needed. Discussions are continuing with
United Airlines on start-up costs and a specific date, Frankl said. 

Expectations are for one flight daily, he said.

Research has shown Washington, D.C. to be among the top destinations for
central Illinois travelers, but Frankl said the service also would help
Springfield to break out of the traditional north-south pattern for local
connections.

"Bloomington has service to Atlanta, Peoria has Las Vegas. We'll be the only
downstate airport with direct service to Washington, D.C. Airports our size
don't often get that opportunity. It's a big deal," he said.

Air service is only a piece of the changes at the airport. The airport
terminal has been renovated and a 10-year project of upgrading runways and
taxiways is all but complete. The Air National Guard has completed a new
headquarters, although the 183rd Fighter Wing's jets are scheduled to leave,
possibly in 2008, as part of national military base cutbacks. The search is
on for a replacement mission.

"Air service is only a small part of our budget, but it's the most visible,"
Frankl said. 

The airport authority has approximately 40 employees and an annual budget of
$4.5 million.

While passenger loyalty to the local airport is a nice goal, Frankl said the
reality of competition among airports such as Springfield, Bloomington and
Peoria is based on price, a variety of connecting flights and convenience.

"In the end, there's only so much an airport director can do. Then it's up
to the community to use the service or not," he said.

While distance from his family in Ohio was a factor, Frankl said the Toledo
job is a good step toward his eventual goal of becoming an airline industry
consultant. He starts his new job just three days after leaving Springfield.

"It will allow me to get another airport under my belt," Frankl said, who
was director of operations and facilities for the airport in Fort Wayne,
Ind., before returning to Springfield.

He added that he expects air service in Springfield to have a considerably
different look a year from now. "I'll be watching from afar," he said.

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