SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) -
Do you fly much? Wish there were more options like JetBlue or Southwest flying out of Savannah-Hilton Head International? Airport officials say they ares still working on it.
Those airlines are still in the mix. On Thursday morning, airport officials and the consulting firm they work with gave an overview of the airline industry in general and its impact on Savannah. What was interesting was not any news of a new airline, but the possible return of an old one. Allegiant Airlines is in talks to come back to Savannah.
"What we are trying to do is get them to sell Savannah as a destination market and to come here, partner with the hotels because really they are a travel company who owns an airline. They want to sell rooms," Patrick Graham, executive director Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport, told WTOC. "We are working on convincing them and working with hotels to make packages for Savannah to sell in Fort Lauderdale."
With the possible return of Allegiant, Dr. Stephen Van Beek, of Leigh Fisher management Consultants, spoke to airport officials and community leaders about the current airline situation and the potential for a new major airline to come to Savannah.
JetBlue announced it is adding more planes, but Van Beek also says JetBlue is not expanding domestically this year.
Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines remains in the conversation, too. Savannah is still on both airlines' radars.
"JetBlue, I probably see in the near term as a better chance than Southwest, but Southwest has moved into the southeast in a big way with the acquisition of Air Tran and move into Atlanta," Van Beek said. "I would say it is a very dynamic market for Southwest, worth keeping an eye on. Is it going to happen in next year or two years? Probably not. Let's see how other markets are performing."
Van Beek also says to keep an eye on a possible merger between U.S Airways and American Airlines.
The airport will be holding another workshop on Hilton Head Island in September.
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