Chicago flights' slow start expected

July 7, 2016 at 12:06a.m.

VIENNA

The Youngstown/Chicago Great Lakes JetExpress service needs more passengers.

Thirty-eight percent of capacity for the 49-seat Embraer ERJ-145 jet was sold for the period from last Friday through Monday.

“I would have loved to see 50 percent,” said Mickey Bowman, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Aerodynamics Inc., the company that brought the service here.

Dan Dickten, director of aviation at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport said Tuesday was the best day for ticket sales revenue since June 1 with total sales of $5,148.

“To sustain the service, ticket sales need to reach an average of $8,500 daily,” Dickten said.

Bowman attributes the slow sales to the holiday weekend and only having about a month of advanced ticket sales.

Also, the reservation system had some glitches.

“We started out with a handicap here with booking not working well,” Dickten said.

The Great Lakes JetExpress’ service from Youngstown Regional to Chicago O’Hare International Airport launched with a morning flight Friday with 36 passengers on board.

“Overall, it went well,” Bowman said. “We had no major problems at any time.”

Both Dickten and Bowman expect to see the service take off at a slow pace. The goal is to see it sustained within five to 10 months with five months being the best-case scenario.

Sustained means “it’s making money and we no longer need to pay a subsidy,” Dickten explained.

The airport has a $1.2 million revenue guarantee for Aerodynamics to operate in partnership with Great Lakes. Of the $1.2 million, $780,000 is federal grant funding and $420,000 comes from the local hotel-bed tax fund and other sources.

The local funds are reimbursed at a rate of 65 percent from the federal grant as they are used to subsidize the service.

“These startups always lose money in the beginning,” Dickten said.

YNGAir Partners, a non-profit organization that supports the airport, is hoping to raise more funds to help sustain the new service.

To promote ticket sales, the Western Reserve Port Authority, which oversees the airport, approved a marketing campaign with PALO Creative of Youngstown for $96,000.

“It’s going to take a grass-roots effort,” Bowman said of selling tickets.

Dickten has reached out and met with local businesses to use the new daily scheduled, 10-flights-a-week service.

A big part of selling tickets is making both individuals and businesses aware the service exists. The airport last saw a daily operation 14 years ago.

“It looks to me like we are slowly honing our craft, and each day the flights are more on time,” Bowman said.

Tickets for the flights are purchased through Great Lakes and tickets with connecting flights must be purchased on other travel sites such as Expedia or Travelocity.