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Lea County supports Pacific Wings service
By Stella Davis
Article Launched: 03/07/2007 10:15:45 PM MST
CARLSBAD —Pacific Wings is in; Mesa Airlines is out in Lea County.
Now the ball is in Carlsbad City Council's court whether Pacific Wings will fly in Hobbs and Carlsbad.
On Tuesday, the Lea County Vice Commission voted unanimously to recommend Hawaii-based Pacific Wings airline to the Department of Transportation as the essential air service provider in Lea County.
The Carlsbad City Council will meet at 11 a.m. today at City Hall to vote on whether to stay with Mesa or switch to Pacific Wings.
The current essential air service agreement between Lea County, City of Carlsbad and Mesa Airlines ends April 30, a Mesa Airlines representative said Monday during a public meeting in Carlsbad where Mesa representatives made a presentation to the city council in the hope of convincing the council to keep Mesa flying in Carlsbad.
Lea County's airport is under the jurisdiction of the county, while in Carlsbad the municipal airport is managed by the city.
In the event that Lea County and Carlsbad vote differently, Mesa will remain the carrier, according to Carlsbad Mayor Bob Forrest.
"Under the Essential Air Service program, it requires both communities to be in agreement on the essential air service
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provider. If the council votes in favor of Mesa, then Mesa will continue as the carrier," Forrest explained.
Lea County Commissioner Randy McCormick said the commission's vote was unanimous in favor of Pacific Wings. He said that letters from Lea County residents to the county ran 7 to 1 in support of Pacific Wings.
"Everybody was wanting a change. They were not satisfied with Mesa for a lot of different reasons. McCormick said. "The cost of flights, frequent flight cancellations and frequent equipment failure were the main complaints. The promises from Pacific Wings are very encouraging when we had no promises from Mesa — what you see is what you get from Mesa. We need to go other places than Albuquerque. If this (Pacific Wings) doesn't work out, we haven't lost anything. We haven't had a whole lot to begin with. We (the commission) are the voice of the people, and the people in Lea County said they want a change. You have to listen to what people tell you and vote their way."
Whichever airline is recommended to the Department of Transportation, and if the recommendation is approved by the federal agency — which provides a subsidy to essential air service carriers — the agreement between the community and airline will be in force for the next two years.
Lea County supports Pacific Wings service
By Stella Davis
Article Launched: 03/07/2007 10:15:45 PM MST
CARLSBAD —Pacific Wings is in; Mesa Airlines is out in Lea County.
Now the ball is in Carlsbad City Council's court whether Pacific Wings will fly in Hobbs and Carlsbad.
On Tuesday, the Lea County Vice Commission voted unanimously to recommend Hawaii-based Pacific Wings airline to the Department of Transportation as the essential air service provider in Lea County.
The Carlsbad City Council will meet at 11 a.m. today at City Hall to vote on whether to stay with Mesa or switch to Pacific Wings.
The current essential air service agreement between Lea County, City of Carlsbad and Mesa Airlines ends April 30, a Mesa Airlines representative said Monday during a public meeting in Carlsbad where Mesa representatives made a presentation to the city council in the hope of convincing the council to keep Mesa flying in Carlsbad.
Lea County's airport is under the jurisdiction of the county, while in Carlsbad the municipal airport is managed by the city.
In the event that Lea County and Carlsbad vote differently, Mesa will remain the carrier, according to Carlsbad Mayor Bob Forrest.
"Under the Essential Air Service program, it requires both communities to be in agreement on the essential air service
Advertisement
provider. If the council votes in favor of Mesa, then Mesa will continue as the carrier," Forrest explained.
Lea County Commissioner Randy McCormick said the commission's vote was unanimous in favor of Pacific Wings. He said that letters from Lea County residents to the county ran 7 to 1 in support of Pacific Wings.
"Everybody was wanting a change. They were not satisfied with Mesa for a lot of different reasons. McCormick said. "The cost of flights, frequent flight cancellations and frequent equipment failure were the main complaints. The promises from Pacific Wings are very encouraging when we had no promises from Mesa — what you see is what you get from Mesa. We need to go other places than Albuquerque. If this (Pacific Wings) doesn't work out, we haven't lost anything. We haven't had a whole lot to begin with. We (the commission) are the voice of the people, and the people in Lea County said they want a change. You have to listen to what people tell you and vote their way."
Whichever airline is recommended to the Department of Transportation, and if the recommendation is approved by the federal agency — which provides a subsidy to essential air service carriers — the agreement between the community and airline will be in force for the next two years.
