Last fall, Cleveland and state officials announced with great fanfare plans for a $50 million dollar upgrade of Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Continental Airlines chose Cleveland for expansion plans that included at least 70 new flights. But no one that day could guess that oil prices would skyrocket. In a letter to employees yesterday, Continental's top brass said that jet fuel prices were 75 percent higher than a year ago and so, the airline is cutting back.
Ricky Smith:Every airport in the country is going to be impacted by these kinds of measures.
That's Cleveland Hopkins Cleveland's Airport Director Ricky Smith talking to reporters in the airport's stood in Hopkins' ticketing lounge. He said the airline industry is at a critical moment and Smith said, they were still waiting for more details from the airport's most important airline.
Ricky Smith: At the end of the day, they answer to their board of directors. Our role that we play as an airport system is to do what's necessary to reduce the cost to Continental that the airport brings.
More than 60 percent of passengers at Cleveland Hopkins travel via Continental. And more than 5,000 Clevelanders work for Continental either directly at the airport or through outside contracts and support jobs. As airlines restructure fare costs to take into account rising fuel prices, Smith says there could be a decrease in the number of people willing to fly.
Ricky Smith: As a region we offer a certain number of seats to our traveling public and what will be called into question is whether this market will be oversaturated with seats as we move forward.
A Continental spokesperson said more details on the cuts and possible impacts for the city's airport could come later next week. Mhari Saito, 90.3.