Omaha Eppley Airfield - DISCUSSION

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Tue Apr 25, 2017 11:00 pm

ryan71 wrote:Boston seems the most likely. Both Delta and Southwest have a strong presence there. Between the European connections and O&D demand, it would be easy to fill an E170 or 717. Philadelphia would be redundant in this case, as would JFK, since Delta serves LGA. As for FLL, airlines would want to see the MIA load factors first.

Why would PHL be redundant? Huge international gateway & large metro & business community. So Delta serves LGA...JFK again is a huge international gateway.

As for FLL, its market is different from MIA.

Omababe · Post by **Omababe** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 10:51 am

Southwest has 6 non-stop flights daily to MDW from OMA through August. 0520, 0740, 1150, 1350, 1830, 2010.
...
September - October, 4 flights

Well, that answers it. I'm very sure in previous years I've caught a mid-morning SW flight.

joleo · Post by **joleo** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 2:58 pm

skinzfan23 wrote:
Mr.Nuke wrote:March Traffic was up 9.3% over March 2016, overall year to date traffic is up 5.3%
Wow, that puts them on pace for nearly 4.6 million for the year.

This is very good news! It means the additional capacity the airlines have added in Omaha is being absorbed which wasn't the case in January and February. As to fares, hopefully they were decent in March and the increased load factor wasn't at the expense of pricing power.

I have some fears there is now over capacity to Denver from Omaha, with all the new nonstop flights to the west coast, Seattle, Portland, LA, San Fran and San Diego starting this August, there is less need to connect in Denver on Southwest, United or Frontier. For example, you can get tickets on United for $34 one-way to Denver just a week or two out from now on United. I haven't seen fares that low in years on United! On Frontier, fares are as low as $20 one-way on certain days this coming May. Wow! Airlines lose money at these prices and service will be reduced if seats can't be filled at higher prices. This compares to a March busy time when fares to Denver were crazy high (I paid $375 roundtrip on Southwest to Denver)

skinzfan23 · Post by **skinzfan23** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 3:59 pm

Wow, I just looked at those prices. That is crazy...they even have a one-way on saturday for $35.

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Wed Apr 26, 2017 5:22 pm

skinzfan23 wrote:
Mr.Nuke wrote:March Traffic was up 9.3% over March 2016, overall year to date traffic is up 5.3%
Wow, that puts them on pace for nearly 4.6 million for the year.

Excellent news indeed

...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Ryan Air · Post by **Ryan Air** » Tue May 02, 2017 9:29 am

ugh. 9% was ALREADY ADDED IN 2016. It is what provided for 4.2% growth YOY. With 446,000 seats added, and if we equate (INCORRECTLY, I MIGHT ADD) seats available with passengers traveled, therer would be a deficit of 267.361 seats/passengers. That number in addition to the previous differential divided out and annualized would be all it would take to prove we're "in the good". Following this logic the differential to indicate growth and absorbing seats would need to be 11.2% or 4,804,650 annualized.Because you would need the 9% the the net positive organic growth. Thats never going to happen and to look for those numbers, you'd be crazy. Currently, we are at 5% or 4,523,671 annualized. Which is better than what i calculate as a positive differential (net, including new seats and attrition) to show these seats are still being absorbed. Passengers traveled do not equal seats available. Percent booked by airline and destination (load factors) at the end of the year compared to last year will show what you want seat-wise. Any passenger growth number, ANY, is good. Maybe not for a super fast implementation of all these big wish ideas we all have for new destinations or international service, but it certainly ISN'T bad. 5% is STELLAR!

Positive growth of any sort simply will not indicate a threat for the Omaha [air] market in my opinion.

skinzfan23 · Post by **skinzfan23** » Mon May 15, 2017 1:43 pm

Here are a few more renderings I found for the rental car area:

TitosBuritoBarn · Post by **TitosBuritoBarn** » Mon May 15, 2017 7:41 pm

Nice! That looks awesome. Now if the rest of the airport could match that...

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Tue May 16, 2017 3:30 am

Those renderings are freakin' fantastic

...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Tue May 16, 2017 7:26 pm

I'm curious. What will become of the area where the car rental counters are now?

By the way, yes those drawings are impressive. I assume that the style will be carried out as the rest of the terminal plan goes forward.

For what it's worth, check out Wichita's new terminal. Yes, that Wichita. They did a very nice job. Bright, airy, lots of room.

iamjacobm · Post by **iamjacobm** » Tue May 16, 2017 9:07 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote:I'm curious. What will become of the area where the car rental counters are now?

By the way, yes those drawings are impressive. I assume that the style will be carried out as the rest of the terminal plan goes forward.

For what it's worth, check out Wichita's new terminal. Yes, that Wichita. They did a very nice job. Bright, airy, lots of room.

Wichita built from scratch right?

While an attractive terminal would be nice that is pretty far down my wish list for the airport, really want convenience and easy to use first and foremost.

As an aside I flew out of Miami recently and that place is a mess, trash cans catching water coming from leaky roofs, next to no charging stations and birds flying loose in the terminal, woof.

Omababe · Post by **Omababe** » Wed May 17, 2017 12:37 pm

Hmmmm ... Looking at that drawing, they are building the thing right next to the runways. ????? I would think that if they want a rental car center, they would do as most other airports are doing and get it away from the immediate terminal and runway area. Might that location preclude future terminal expansion?

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Wed May 17, 2017 1:06 pm

Omababe wrote:Hmmmm ... Looking at that drawing, they are building the thing right next to the runways. ????? I would think that if they want a rental car center, they would do as most other airports are doing and get it away from the immediate terminal and runway area. Might that location preclude future terminal expansion?

From the looks of the planned expansion of the terminal the view of the runway would be blocked by the planned expansion of the north gates. It's an odd view but it seems to be in keeping with future plans.

Here's a pic of the planned expansion with an arrow where I think the elevated lobby is. I could be wrong but it makes sense. In the rendering above it doesn't show well but there is a road between the elevated lobby and the current tarmac. Thus, while it looks close to "runways" it's really not that close.

Omaha_corn_burner · Post by **Omaha_corn_burner** » Wed May 17, 2017 4:32 pm

Omababe wrote:Hmmmm ... Looking at that drawing, they are building the thing right next to the runways. ????? I would think that if they want a rental car center, they would do as most other airports are doing and get it away from the immediate terminal and runway area. Might that location preclude future terminal expansion?

Yeah you would think they would have a master plan for the future so they wouldn't mess things all up, right?
http://www.sameomaha.org/membership_mee ... 9_2015.pdf

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Wed May 17, 2017 4:58 pm

They aren't done with parking garages. In the picture #27 is another big |expletive| parking garage south of the current one. Oh for the love of pete. The expletive is a s s.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Thu May 18, 2017 4:23 pm

April numbers are out. For the month up 6% and up 5.5% for the year. At plus 5.5% it's on track to have way over 4.5 million & maybe over 4.6. The only carrier really having a problem is Delta.

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Thu May 18, 2017 5:19 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote:April numbers are out. For the month up 6% and up 5.5% for the year. At plus 5.5% it's on track to have way over 4.5 million & maybe over 4.6. The only carrier really having a problem is Delta.

Indeed..

This year looks to be a record setter for air travel at Eppley

...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

OmahaFan · Post by **OmahaFan** » Fri May 19, 2017 12:42 pm

The continue improvement to Eppley is great for Omaha and the surrounding area's. If this growth continue's on this pace we might be seeing another addition within 4 years. Looking at the comment's on here it's really getting me excited. You know it would be nice if they offered public transportation lines to and from the Terminals like a light rail system like they have at some of those fancy big airports. Then again they would need to deal with the Missouri River while digging and keeping it back from flooding the tube lines. I just love seeing Omaha and the airport grow! Make's me happy every time I see a story about business relocating here or tall building going up!

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Fri May 19, 2017 1:58 pm

April traffic up 6% over April 2016, pushing year-to-date traffic up 5.5% over 2016.

Omaha_corn_burner · Post by **Omaha_corn_burner** » Fri May 19, 2017 3:19 pm

OmahaFan wrote:You know it would be nice if they offered public transportation lines to and from the Terminals like a light rail system like they have at some of those fancy big airports.

I love light rail, and also streetcars, but Eppley just needs a bus circulator. It blows my mind that we don't have this.

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Sat May 20, 2017 2:11 am

Omaha_corn_burner wrote:
OmahaFan wrote:You know it would be nice if they offered public transportation lines to and from the Terminals like a light rail system like they have at some of those fancy big airports.
I love light rail, and also streetcars, but Eppley just needs a bus circulator. It blows my mind that we don't have this.

This is a very good point...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Uffda · Post by **Uffda** » Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:37 pm

Received an email today that allegiant will be flying non-stop from Omaha to Vegas (Fri/Mon) starting 11/17 and Phoenix/Mesa (Wed/Sat) starting 10/4

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Tue Jun 20, 2017 5:17 pm

Uffda wrote:Received an email today that allegiant will be flying non-stop from Omaha to Vegas (Fri/Mon) starting 11/17 and Phoenix/Mesa (Wed/Sat) starting 10/4

And the W-H story link:

http://www.omaha.com/money/allegiant-ai ... 64406.html

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Tue Jun 20, 2017 8:27 pm

May traffic up 6.3% month over month versus 2016. Total traffic up 5.6% for the year. United is also quickly closing in on American for the 3rd largest carrier at Eppley.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Tue Jun 20, 2017 8:32 pm

Eppley just posted their May numbers. Up 6.3% month over month & up 5.6% year over year to date.

A 5% increase puts it on track for 4.57 million and a 6% increase is on track for 4.61 million. 6% this year and next and you're on track for over 4.89 next year. Keep that up & expansion of the terminal is sooner than thought. With added flights and destinations announced and coming 5 million is not out of the question. The main thing is as opposed to years gone by where service was brought in and then dropped (i.e. America West to the east and west coasts) it now shows staying power.

OmahaJaysCU · Post by **OmahaJaysCU** » Tue Jun 20, 2017 8:45 pm

I've flown pry 5 times out of OMA this year and have been impressed with how full the flights to and from have been. Anecdotal observation but still. It's been feeling busier every year.

OmahaFan · Post by **OmahaFan** » Thu Jun 22, 2017 8:31 pm

I'm happy to see the Growth of Eppley Airfield. This reflects that Omaha is growing and growing stronger! I hope they keep adding flights and passengers!

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Sun Jun 25, 2017 11:46 pm

It's about time Eppley touted its non stop destinations.

From the home page, a link
http://flyoma.com/images/OMA-Route-Map-Final-Ad-Web.pdf

Dundeemaha · Post by **Dundeemaha** » Mon Jun 26, 2017 2:51 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote:It's about time Eppley touted its non stop destinations.

From the home page, a link
http://flyoma.com/images/OMA-Route-Map-Final-Ad-Web.pdf

Great ad, was also in the weekend paper (perfect timing for out of town visitors to CWS)

skinzfan23 · Post by **skinzfan23** » Mon Jun 26, 2017 3:38 pm

I agree, I saw the ad in the paper and was thinking the same thing.

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Mon Jun 26, 2017 5:35 pm

That ad is fantastic

...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Mon Jun 26, 2017 10:36 pm

It's nice that it's in the owh, and the owh does cover a lot of Nebraska and Iowa, but it also needs to be in the following papers: Lincoln, Des Moines, Sioux City, Grand Island and a few others in the catchment area. In the 80s they had a tv and radio campaign with the theme "We're Flying!". They touted the fact that they had 100 flights a day.

With 29 non stop destinations coast to coast they really do need to ratchet up the marketing.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Tue Jul 11, 2017 6:50 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote:It's nice that it's in the owh, and the owh does cover a lot of Nebraska and Iowa, but it also needs to be in the following papers: Lincoln, Des Moines, Sioux City, Grand Island and a few others in the catchment area. In the 80s they had a tv and radio campaign with the theme "We're Flying!". They touted the fact that they had 100 flights a day.

With 29 non stop destinations coast to coast they really do need to ratchet up the marketing.

It would be interesting to see what the catchment area actually truly is.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Wed Jul 12, 2017 1:25 am

Mr.Nuke wrote:
Bob from Omaha wrote:It's nice that it's in the owh, and the owh does cover a lot of Nebraska and Iowa, but it also needs to be in the following papers: Lincoln, Des Moines, Sioux City, Grand Island and a few others in the catchment area. In the 80s they had a tv and radio campaign with the theme "We're Flying!". They touted the fact that they had 100 flights a day.

With 29 non stop destinations coast to coast they really do need to ratchet up the marketing.
It would be interesting to see what the catchment area actually truly is.

Years ago when Smithey was director he was quoted in the owh as saying the area was roughly a 150-200 circle. Think of it this way: Out to Grand Island, north to Sioux City & somewhat Sioux Falls, east to a bit west of Des Moines, south to a bit into Kansas and Missouri. He said it depended on where you wanted to go, the price of the ticket and relativity to DSM, MCI, LNK. I seem to remember a map in the owh but I could be wrong. If anyone wants to call the airport authority they might tell you.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Tue Jul 18, 2017 6:27 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote: Years ago when Smithey was director he was quoted in the owh as saying the area was roughly a 150-200 circle. Think of it this way: Out to Grand Island, north to Sioux City & somewhat Sioux Falls, east to a bit west of Des Moines, south to a bit into Kansas and Missouri. He said it depended on where you wanted to go, the price of the ticket and relativity to DSM, MCI, LNK. I seem to remember a map in the owh but I could be wrong. If anyone wants to call the airport authority they might tell you.

Yeah and searching Eppley catchment pulled up a post where you had said Smithey said it was a 200 mile circle, which is part of the reason why I posted what I did. A 200 mile circle in the Southern side includes all of Kansas City and as far Southwest as Salina. On the Eastern edge it stretches to near Williamsburg Iowa where at that point O'Hare is only 20 miles further away than Omaha. The Northwest includes a fairly substantial portion that is closer to Minneapolis than Omaha. I can buy that Omaha attracts people from 200 miles away, particularly on the Western edge, but a 200 mile circle is a hard sell. And going back to your post, that is where it would be interesting to see where Eppley is/could be drawing people from as that would impact potential advertising.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Tue Jul 18, 2017 6:40 pm

Mr.Nuke wrote:
Bob from Omaha wrote: Years ago when Smithey was director he was quoted in the owh as saying the area was roughly a 150-200 circle. Think of it this way: Out to Grand Island, north to Sioux City & somewhat Sioux Falls, east to a bit west of Des Moines, south to a bit into Kansas and Missouri. He said it depended on where you wanted to go, the price of the ticket and relativity to DSM, MCI, LNK. I seem to remember a map in the owh but I could be wrong. If anyone wants to call the airport authority they might tell you.
Yeah and searching Eppley catchment pulled up a post where you had said Smithey said it was a 200 mile circle, which is part of the reason why I posted what I did. A 200 mile circle in the Southern side includes all of Kansas City and as far Southwest as Salina. On the Eastern edge it stretches to near Williamsburg Iowa where at that point O'Hare is only 20 miles further away than Omaha. The Northwest includes a fairly substantial portion that is closer to Minneapolis than Omaha. I can buy that Omaha attracts people from 200 miles away, particularly on the Western edge, but a 200 mile circle is a hard sell. And going back to your post, that is where it would be interesting to see where Eppley is/could be drawing people from as that would impact potential advertising.

Obviously it isn't a perfect circle. I would guess that it's west to around Grand Island or so, north to between Sioux City and Sioux Falls, East to just west of Des Moines, and south to just south of the Nebraska/Kansas/Missouri border.

As for advertising I'd suggest the Lincoln, Grand Island, Kearny, Des Moines, Sioux City papers. Why Des Moines if they aren't in the true catchment area? Because those west of Des Moines read that paper. And for what it's worth, there is a percentage of Des Moines residents who still drive to Omaha to fly. I wouldn't put an ad in every day but a couple of Sundays a month in the travel section.

There are actually people here in Detroit who drive to Flint to fly because on occasion it's actually cheaper. DTW is better than is was when Delta dominated almost completely, with Southwest, Spirit, JetBlue, etc, but it can still be pricey depending on where you want to go.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Tue Jul 18, 2017 11:02 pm

Eppley posted another 5% increase for June. Year to date it's up 5 1/2%. Still on track to blow past 4.5 million for this year. Another 5% next year & you're at about 4.8 for 2018 & over 5 million for 2019. Makes 2020 over 5.25. At some point somebody at the airport has to be working on expansion of the terminal & gates.

I was surprised that Frontier didn't include Omaha in their most recent expansion. They added something like 85 new flights or something like that. Not that Frontier is going to lift Omaha to 7 million a year but still...

daveoma · Post by **daveoma** » Fri Jul 21, 2017 4:42 am

I flew into the Quad Cities airport and their terminal area, albeit small was gorgeous. It was airy, full of huge windows with nice views of the runways. Eppley could learn something from the brightness of the space. It's much better than the tan bricks that we have.

skinzfan23 · Post by **skinzfan23** » Fri Jul 21, 2017 3:28 pm

Eppley sets record for passenger traffic with roughly 445,000 flyers in June alone

Summer vacation is treating Eppley Airfield well: June was the airport’s busiest month on record.

This year’s second quarter — April, May and June — also was the busiest second quarter ever for Eppley, with more than 1.2 million passengers, said Steve McCoy, Eppley’s manager of airline affairs. Roughly 445,000 passengers used the airport in June alone.

The previous monthly traffic record of about 426,200 passengers was set in July 2008.

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Fri Jul 21, 2017 5:12 pm

This is fantastic growth..

As the W-H piece points out, a strong indicator of an excellent economy combined with increased demand for larger planes, more seats and now a record 29 non stop destinations.. I'd like to see that number increase to the mid 30's within the next 18 or so months...

Ciao..LiO...Peace