SWF Could See European Flights By End of 2008

This article appeared in the Poughkeepsie Journal yesterday.

My view on the matter:

SWF has been talking about and trying to raise the money to build an international facility at the end of the current terminal building with two new jetways dedicated to international flights. I'm assuming with this recent development they have gotten the funds to build this new addition.

SWF has definitely struck an interest with European charter airlines, especially in Britan, due to its proximity to Woodbury Commons which is a large shopping outlet. The airport is also located in the heart of the Hudson Valley which I am sure could attract a lot of European tourists in the summer months.

Since the article mainly states the airlines that are interested in the airport are low-cost and charter airlines I'm guessing that such airlines as Zoom, Eurofly, LTU that currently serve JFK have taken an interest. I'm also guessing that airlines like Thomas Cook, Monarch, and Thomsonfly have taken an interest.

There was a brief rumor of a new premium carrier that wanted to build a dedicate terminal at SWF to launch flights to England with A319s but I don't think anything has come out of that yet.

This is definitely an interesting new development in the airports growing future.

Hope something good comes out of this!

Quote:

Official: Transatlantic service possible at Stewart International Airport by end of 2008

Gannett News Service

NEW WINDSOR — There won’t be any direct flights to Europe from Stewart International Airport in the immediate future, but airport officials are confident transatlantic service could begin by the end of this year.

Stewart General Manager Diannae Ehler last Friday returned from London and Frankfurt, where she met with 12 European carriers.

Ehler traveled with William DeCota, director of aviation for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, operator of the Orange County airport.

“We didn’t come back with any deals per se but we did get a lot of interest, which was very exciting,” Ehler said Wednesday.

Ehler declined to name the airlines they met because of ongoing negotiations, but she described them as low-fare carriers and charters.

“My personal goal is to have some international business by the end of this year but definitely by next year,” said Ehler, who lives in West Nyack and took over as Stewart’s GM in November.

Some of those airlines already fly out of the other Port Authority-controlled airports — Kennedy International, La Guardia and Newark Liberty — which, in 2007, handled a record 107 million passengers. Attracting the foreign carriers to Stewart would help draw some of the traffic from those airports, providing relief.

During her trip, Ehler said she let the carriers know the Port Authority was now running Stewart and the mid-Hudson Valley had plenty to offer, besides being close to New York City.

She took along brochures of Woodbury Commons — the shopping outlet already attracts shopping junkets from Europe and Japan — and Ehler talked up attractions such as the United States Military Academy at West Point.

“The Port Authority is not sitting back waiting for airlines to come to us,” Ehler said.
The airport already has the long runways needed to handle international flights — they’re long enough to handle the Space Shuttle. But the main terminal would need to be enlarged with a separate space for international flights. A federal inspection area would need to be included to allow passengers to pass through U.S. Customs, Ehler said.

This year, Ehler is anticipating about a million people will use the airport, with its current lineup of flights and destinations. On Jan. 6, Skybus Airlines began service to Columbus, Ohio, and starts going to Greensboro, N.C., Feb. 25.

“We’re looking to grow but to do so in a way that’s smart and measured and meets the needs” of the local community, Ehler said.