Author: By Matthew Brelis, Globe Staff Date: 10/04/2000 Page: D1 Section: BusinessShuttle America plans to increase its daily flights out of Hanscom Field later this month regardless of whether it receives approval from the Federal Aviation Administration to begin service to New York's LaGuardia Airport, an airline executive said yesterday.
The Connecticut-based low-cost carrier had planned on beginning the New York service last month, but the FAA delayed giving approval for 30 days while the state reviewed the service for potential effects on historic preservation sites around Hanscom. The airport is bounded by Bedford, Concord, Lexington and Lincoln, and its access road is off Route 2A which runs through Minute Man National Historical Park.
Shuttle America leased an additional Dash-8-300 aircraft in anticipation of the new service. It is currently being used in place of an existing airplane that is undergoing a scheduled heavy maintenance check. But that airplane is due back in service shortly.
Shuttle America officials said they now hope to begin service to LaGuardia on Oct. 23 and will begin selling tickets as soon as Oct. 15, when the 30-day review period expires. If, however, LaGuardia service does not receive final approval by Oct. 15, then the airline will use the additional airplane to increase service from Hanscom on existing routes, such as Trenton, N.J.
"We will put the airplane into service on October 23rd from Hanscom Field whether or not LaGuardia is finalized," said Mark Cestari, Shuttle America's vice president for marketing and communications. "We simply cannot let a $10 million asset sit idle."
If the plane is used on existing routes, the airline would not need FAA approval to add it to the system, aviation officials said.
"We need to have that aircraft in revenue service and given the complicated dynamics we face at LaGuardia and here at Hanscom, the quickest thing to do is put it into service in the existing market," Cestari said. "The net effect of any further political delays or maneuvering will not reduce or restrain the number of Shuttle America departures from Hanscom."
The two potential impediments to New York service are the preservation review and congestion at LaGuardia.
On Sept. 26, the state Historic Preservation Officer wrote to the FAA saying much more detailed information was needed before the agency could determine if the proposed flights would affect historic preservation sites.
An FAA spokesman said the agency was working to respond to the letter within the timeframe. "We are talking to everybody, and it is a little early to start thinking about impending deadlines," said Eliot Brenner, FAA deputy director for public affairs, when asked if all the work could be accomplished by Oct. 15.
A spokesman for the Massachusetts Port Authority, which supports Shuttle America's proposed flights, said the request by the historic preservation officer was a politically motivated delaying tactic.
"This is another example of local opponents trying to use their political connections to interfere with sound public policy," said Massport spokesman Jose Juves.
Massport is seeking permission to build a controversial commuter runway at Boston's Logan International Airport. The agency has touted use of alternative airports as part of a "regional" approach to aviation.
However, many residents in the affluent suburbs surrounding Hanscom are opposed to commercial airline operations out of Hanscom, the state's main general aviation airport.
Nearly 10 percent of Logan's 27 million passengers fly in and out of New York, and Massport officials think the Shuttle America flights to LaGuardia could help reduce the demand on Logan.
The second barrier to Shuttle America is LaGuardia Airport's proposed moratorium on new flights in and out of the airport at peak hours starting this month.
Massport officials are urging the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to allow Shuttle America to fly into LaGuardia despite the moratorium - which some other airlines have ignored.
In a letter to Robert Boyle, executive director of the New York Port Authority, Virginia Buckingham, Massport's executive director, and Thomas Kinton, Massport's aviation director, asked for an exemption for Shuttle America.
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