Paradigm: “A distinct set of concepts or thought patterns”
As we stated last month, change is inevitable, and the Ogden Airport is no different. We have teased the last few months about how the aviation world is changing in terms of commercial service to the greater Ogden area.
During a recent press conference Mayor Mike Caldwell, of Ogden, announced new routes coming to the Ogden Airport. In early October 2017, the Ogden Airport will be providing twice weekly service to the Los Angeles area. In early November 2017, the Ogden Airport will be providing twice weekly service to the Las Vegas area. The service will be provided by Allegiant Airlines, who currently provides service twice a week to the Mesa-Phoenix, Arizona area.
Our greater communities want to get to their destinations, in other parts of the country and the world, as quickly and cheaply as possible. We all strive to get there as conveniently as possible. Commercial air passenger travel is going up every year on a national basis. An example may be a past holiday weekend, July 4th. On the Friday before the 4th, one of the largest airports in the United States, Hartsfield-Jackson International set a one-day record for passengers going through security checkpoints of 92,421 with 95% of those passengers waiting less than 20 minutes . Certainly the 280,000 passengers a day through their airport is more impressive, but that includes all connecting passengers.
The Homeland Security Agency, TSA, has stepped up to make those line waits shorter also. They recently eclipsed 5 million enrolled passengers in their Pre-Check program, which is a considerable number for a program that started in December 2013 and costs enrollees money to join.
The Ogden Airport generally gets their passengers from parking lot to passenger terminal through TSA in less than 20 minutes.
I started this article by using a definition of the word, paradigm. Why would future commercial air service be important to the greater Ogden Area? Certainly, everyone will have an opinion. However, a large trade group, Airlines for America (A4A), in the United States, recently published a chart that depicts a rate of airline industry job growth that is more than double that of the overall economy. Therefore, not surprisingly, US airline industry employment growth could be even greater, as could overall travel and tourism job creation.
It’s important to note that airlines cannot measure lost demand and revenue from disillusioned leisure travelers who have given up on flying or business travelers who have increased the number of miles they are willing to drive their cars to avoid airlines. High-yield business travelers who have found ways to reduce their number of monthly trips to avoid those long waits in airports may also be included in this category. But the numbers seem to indicate these lost travelers are willing to give air travel another chance, especially considering that airline prices are usually more affordable than driving.
With these developments and advances in TSA times, routes, and overall air travel convenience, a change in Ogden’s aviation paradigm comes naturally.
