Good afternoon,
It’s hard to believe that five years ago, we boarded a Frontier flight to Phoenix from New Castle Airport.
For a brief time, Frontier Airlines offered daily service to Denver, with a convenient connection to Sky Harbor Airport and an affordable fare.
At the time, Frontier was focusing on New Castle and Trenton as alternatives to the runway challenged and congestion-plagued Philadelphia International Airport.
The flight with my grandson went well and it was great to share the wonders of my native state.
Sadly, Frontier later dropped Denver and eventually all destinations from New Castle Airport.
The reasons for the change were centered on the ancient terminal at New Castle as well as new ownership at Frontier that focuses on the ultra-low-fare model that charges fees for things like using the overhead bin for luggage.
Under the new regime, flights moved to Philadelphia International Airport. Frontier has carved out a niche with flights (mostly a few times a week) to a couple of dozen cities from Philadelphia.
Flights also continue out of Trenton, an airport that serves the fringe of the Philly market.
American, the 800-pound gorilla in Philadelphia, has responded by adding fights to some cities where it had previously cut service. In other words, competition is a good thing.
Hopes have dimmed for commercial service out of New Castle, the conventional wisdom being that airlines are OK with flight delays and congestion in Philadelphia. Moreover, New Castle is too close to Philadelphia to qualify for subsidies that we see at other small airports.
None of this means that the need should be ignored for a new terminal for both executive jets and future commercial air service. After all, Frontier has a couple of hundred jets on order.
With the Port of Wilmington off the books, there is room in the bond bill for a new terminal serving executive jets with a configuration that would allow commercial flights.
Don’t expect the River and Bay Authority to foot the bill, given the politics of an agency where two governors have veto powers.
Delaware has a lot of priorities. But top-notch private aviation and commercial airline service should be part of the economic development mix in the only state in the union without commercial flights.
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