DENVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT United, Frontier gain gates, access

Denver will spend nearly $100 million to keep United and Frontier airlines happy.
DENVER (AP) -- City officials hailed an agreement with the two largest airlines at Denver International Airport, United and Frontier, settling a dispute about how many gates each of the hub carriers will have there.
Frontier has said it needs more gates to accommodate its growing fleet and has threatened to move some of its operations to another airport if more gates were not available at DIA.
As part of the deal, the city will build a $40 million, 38-gate regional jet facility to be used by United and its regional partners. The city also will build new ticket counters for United, a $15-million project. Denver will also build an extension on Frontier's concourse for about $42.5 million.
"Neither side got everything they want, but this will work," Mayor John Hickenlooper told The Associated Press.
United has been reluctant to surrender any of its gates, saying they are needed for a new low-cost airline that the nation's second-largest carrier plans to launch from Denver next year.
Pete McDonald, United's executive vice president for operations, called the agreement "a good one for Denver, for Denver International Airport and for the millions of airline customers who fly in and out of DIA each year." As part of the agreement United will not ask a bankruptcy court judge to end its Denver lease.
Growth potential
Frontier spokesman Andrew Hudson said United will relinquish three gates during the expansion. Once the expanded terminal is completed, Denver-based Frontier will have 20 gates, nine more than it has now.
"It's not the optimal solution but it is a good compromise," Hudson said. "Critical to our growth plan is having gate access at DIA. We can't express enough how much we appreciate Mayor Hickenlooper and his staff for making lemonade out of an orange."
While some other discount carriers had shied away from DIA because of expensive landing fees, Frontier has been the up-and-coming airline at the airport. It increased its share of traffic from 10 percent last year to 13 percent in 2003.
Last summer Frontier's business was up 42 percent while overall traffic at the airport rose 2 percent, and United, working to get out of bankruptcy, was down 6 percent.
United, based in Elk Grove Village, Ill., still dominates the airport with 51 percent of traffic. But that has fallen from nearly 55 percent last year.
Frontier is planning to expand its fleet by 60 percent over the next five years, and last month posted its first profit in five quarters.
United has a 30-year agreement that requires it to average three flights a day per gate through 2025. It leases 51 gates at the airport.