Non-stop Detroit service for Lincoln

[eomaha]

Lincoln gets new nonstop flights to, from Detroit

Northwest Airlines will add nonstop flights between Lincoln and Detroit.

Beginning Oct. 31, Northwest will have three daily round-trip flights between the two cities, a change the Lincoln Airport billed as a "significant increase."

Northwest began one daily nonstop flight from Lincoln to Detroit in June but offered no nonstop return service. Travelers instead had to go through Minneapolis.

"This additional service is a key to maintain Lincoln's economic growth," U.S. Rep. Doug Bereuter, R-Neb., said in a statement. The flights will help the city "attract and retain the kinds of businesses needed."

John Wood, executive director of the Lincoln Airport Authority, noted that Northwest's terminal in Detroit is just a year old and has won awards for passenger appeal and convenience.

"Unlike other large Midwestern hubs, Detroit has not been plagued by the delays and cancellations brought on by overscheduling and capacity issues," he said.

The Lincoln Airport will lose service by American Airlines on Sept. 8. The decision - first reported in July - was based partly on capacity problems at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration has asked American to cut flights to O'Hare.