sipes23

It won't work.

I lived in Rockford for about 5 years in the 90s and now live about halfway between ORD and RFD. It is a post-industrial crater of a town. And I say that with affection.

IF major airlines flew out of RFD, I'd still pick ORD as my starting point. It would mean one fewer connection every time. I don't care that parking is free. My opinion would change if flights went from RFD to STL, DEN and IAD for connections, but they won't. TPA (rather than PIE) is competitive from ORD. As is BWI--better to go to DCA anyway if you're going to DC. I don't have any opinion about EWR. I'll bet that none of those flights connect.

And RFD to BWI? Seriously? Why not ORD to DCA? That is so much easier, even if you have to drive from RFD to ORD.

My advice to them would be to stick to cargo. Or find a way to make the day trip concept they ran a few years ago work better.

fairviewroad

Not a death, as such...but the service already appears to be in trouble:

http://www.businessrockford.com/home...-delays-launch

That said, hopefully they'll come up with a much better name than "Air Azul".

fairviewroad

RFD did have flights to DEN for connections, but not enough people used the service. Same was true for connecting flights to DTW.

On the other hand, RFD has had considerable success with its non-connecting service to leisure destinations. I don't think anyone there imagines RFD will become an ORD-clone. Like Allegiant Air (one of the major players in RFD), RFD has carved out a niche. Not everything that works at ORD will work in RFD.

You're right, the flights to BWI and EWR seem to have limited potential (see my previous post, for instance). But to say "stick to cargo" doesn't really reflect the major successes they've had there in recent years.

milepig

My quick check shows:

Direct Air 2 flights per week to Myrtle Beach and then on to Ft. Meyers
Allegiant 2 per week to Vegas
Allegiant 2 per week to Phoenix
Allegiant 3 per week to Orlando
Allegiant 2 per week to St. Pete
And it looks like Apple runs charters from time to time.

That's a grand total of 11 flights per WEEK. Not what I'd call "considerable success"!

fairviewroad

I'll grant you that "success" is a subjective term. But consider that as recently as 2002, RFD had no scheduled passenger service whatsoever.

In 2007, the most recent year for which FAA statistics are available, more than 110,000 people boarded flights at RFD. In that same year, RFD was the 215th busiest commercial airport in the U-S, out of a total of 575 airports with commercial service. RFD has risen in the rankings every year since it regained passenger service.

So yes, they have just 11 flights per week (all on mainline aircraft, I might add). But clearly they are doing something right. From ZERO passengers to 110,000 in 5 years. I'm guessing a lot of airport managers would love to experience that kind of growth. (Keeping in mind that RFD is also in the TOP 20 for cargo airports in the U-S)

djk7

And they really don't fly to Orlando. They fly to Sanford, which is another 30-40 minutes further from the tourist area than MCO. On the plus side, Sanford does offer free parking.

sipes23

Like I said, one fewer connection. Hypothetically, let's say we want to go to Los Angeles. Through RFD with service to DEN, the trip is RFD > DEN > LAX. From ORD, it's ORD > LAX. (Ok, so for those of us accumulating segments that's no good.) Admittedly, the RFD>DEN flight doesn't seem as ridiculous as the RFD>ORD, and I'd probably jump airports due to where I live.

No, it will never be an ORD, but it won't be the third passenger airport that RFD's boosters want either. I don't think the demographic in and around Rockford works in favor of that.

For another poster, Allegiant (if memory serves) flies to Mesa (AZA?), which isn't PHX, though that might not be a bad swap.

joer

When this was first announced, I speculated that their URL (flythenewblue.com) was an attempt to confuse people into thinking that they were somehow related to Jetblue, a speculation that is somewhat bolstered by this article announcing Air Azul's name to JetAmerica.

Keep in mind that NW shot themselves in the foot on those DTW flights by pricing them so high. Although with the GM plant in Janesville being shut down and the spectacular implosion of Chrysler, I don't know how long those flights would have lasted even if NW had priced them more reasonably than the ~$750rt that they quoted me once.

joer

Well, if you selected May 27, Come on down and claim your prize!

You can learn more from the Cranky Flier here.

fairviewroad

Who uses RFD?

Oprah! Or her employees, at least.

http://www.businessrockford.com/bizn...ckford-airport

UPDATE: So Oprah herself did not fly out of RFD. The article says five flights departed to Barcelona on Saturday but I only see 3 listed on Flightaware. Two were DC-10's and one was an MD-11. Must have been an impressive sight for RFD.

http://www.rrstar.com/communities/x9...out-their-boss

joer

The latest vein in the gold/silver/bronze mine that is the Greater Rockford Airport leads to Branson, MO!

For those that find that article to be tl;dr, I'll summarize: The Greater Rockford Airport is protecting ExpressJet from losses to the amount of $30,000 so that ExpressJet can operate 50 seat RJ's between RFD and Branson 3 times a week for 5 weeks.

The big selling point for the new Branson airport is that it's 45-minutes closer to Branson than the current Springfield, MO airport is. So, to get to Branson from Chicago by air, you either have to drive for 45 minutes from Springfield, MO to Branson after your flight, Or drive 45 Minutes to Rockford before your flight.

Am I the only one who thinks that they didn't really think this one through?

fairviewroad

That's assuming everyone who flies to Branson from RFD is starting in Chicago. With Allegiant, RFD needs people from Chicagoland to fill the planes. But with just 3 RJ's per week to Branson, you don't need to draw as many people from outside the area. And with RFD you still get free parking so even driving up from the 'burbs may still pencil out. However, I'd imagine that a city the size of Rockford can fill 150 seats a week to Branson during the Christmas season without needing too many people to come up the tollway from Chicago.

fairviewroad

The latest RFD possibility: RFD-MCI.

http://gazettextra.com/news/2009/nov...ts-gm-workers/

Sweet Willie

Rockford rebates are back again, this time to Cancun (CUN): http://www.flyrfd.com/WQ4CUN2.ASP

fairviewroad

The latest destination from Rockford is .....


Belgrade!

However, aside from this article I can't find any confirmation of this. It should be noted that Ryan International Airlines is different than the much maligned Ryanair of Europe.