Let’s make ADI’s takeoff in Valley roaring success

Two long years after Aero- dynamics Inc. first proposed initiating daily nonstop service from Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport, all systems are finally and indisputably go for takeoff.

After a troublesome series of setbacks and delays, ADI received final clearance from the U.S. Department of Transportation on May 20 to commence its service from Youngstown to Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Ten daily flights per week will launch July 1, just in time for the high-traffic Independence Day holiday weekend.

This week tickets for the service went on sale via the websites flyadi.com or flygreatlakes.com. (ADI has a code-share agreement with Great Lakes Airlines to provide ticketing, baggage and transfers onto major legacy carriers.)

Soon, tickets will be available on major travel booking websites such as Orbitz, Expedia and Travelocity for flights from YNG to virtually anywhere in the world via Chicago.

The onus now is on air travelers from the Mahoning and Shenango valleys to prove that acquisition of the region’s first daily air service in 14 years was well worth the sometimes bumpy two-year effort. They can best do so by altering their mindsets and their travel itineraries away from larger airports in Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Akron-Canton.

As we’ve emphasized numerous times throughout our longstanding support of the service, there’s much to gain from just such an attitude adjustment.

Consider pricing. According to the flygreatlakes.com website, a ticket to Chicago from Youngstown-Warren will cost $89.50 each way or $179 round trip, including taxes. A quick glance at a major online booking site shows prices of $350 and higher for the same round-trip nonstop service from the larger airports in the region.

THE CONVENIENCE FACTOR

Consider, too, convenience. With headlines filled with horror stories of long lines, anguishing waits and missed flights, going through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints at YNG should be speedy and seamless. Local airport users also will avoid long drives and steep parking prices as well.

Consider as well the impact of successful daily service on economic development. For the airport, ADI’s success could lead to an increase in destinations and more hubbub at the facility. For Valley businesses engaged in interstate and international commerce, the local airport is a cost-saving godsend. Those perks also make it a drawing card for attracting new industry.

As Ron Klingle, chairman of the Western Reserve Port Authority that operates the airport, put it, “From an economic development point of view, this can be one of the most important things we’ve seen in our community in the last 20 years.”

Clearly, much stands to be gained for many parties. To guarantee maximum success, ADI and airport officials must remain committed to fulfilling their pledge of providing timely, dependable, safe and relatively inexpensive service for its target client base of about 700,000 people in the five-county region.

In return, residents here should do their part to give the airline a promising takeoff come July 1 toward a successful, growth-oriented and extended stay in our community.