MOSINEE, WI (WSAU) — After a brief run last summer, American Airlines will once again offer three daily flights from the Central Wisconsin Airport to Chicago’s O’Hare International starting February 15th.
American added a 3rd daily flight last June. Airport Director Brian Grefe said that ended by early September, though he continued to lobby for another daily flight and expects this one to have more staying power. “It’s back earlier this year and hopefully it will stick. There is certainly plenty of demand for that service to Chicago O’Hare,” said Grefe. “This gives travelers more options and more seats,” added Grefe. “With additional seats generally comes better prices.”
Getting more flights has been difficult for small, regional airports like CWA due to an industry-wide shortage of pilots and flight staff. Grefe says he’s not the only one in his position lobbying for extra flights or destinations, meaning if they get one it’s a sign of support and investment by American Airlines, which he hopes to leverage into something bigger. “I’ve been very open with the board that I’m talking with American about the potential for [flights to] Dallas-Ft. Worth. They are growing that [hub.] I don’t see it realistically happening in 2024. But if we set the table right, you could see something as soon as 2025.”
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Grefe adds that it’s unclear if Avelo Airlines will add to their schedule of round-trip flights to Orlando, which currently run on Thursdays and Sundays. He expects they will publish their summer schedule by February 15th. He also doesn’t expect they will add flights from CWA to other destinations like Las Vegas, but that could happen later in the year.
He adds that Avelo’s Boeing aircraft are not the 737-MAX 9’s grounded for safety inspections, which would have devastated their schedules. “We’re fortunate there. That would have had a significant impact [since they are] a newer airline and they don’t have a lot of aircraft. Fortunately, the ones that they have are operational.”
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