Omaha Eppley Airfield - DISCUSSION

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Mon Apr 08, 2019 11:05 am

Mr.Nuke wrote: Mon Apr 08, 2019 10:27 am
Bob from Omaha wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 7:10 pm Mr. Nuke, maybe you've said already but I really wonder if you're just the biggest Eppley- or Airline-geek or do you work for Eppley or some company intimately involved in the airline business?
Just a big Eppley and aviation enthusiast that happens to have a degree in financial analysis (something that is basically looking at and analyzing numbers, hence why a lot of my posts in this thread are data driven).

Just looking at it from my perch as a crusty old capitalist you could monetize your skills by putting out some sort of publication regarding the airline industry. Actually, substitute the word could with should. Back in the day when I actually owned a business I'd have offered you a job immediately and then figured out what it was I wanted you to do. We never ignored potential talent. Once, when we were having a meeting at a restaurant in Columbus, Ohio, when we asked the waitress for the check I gave her my business card & said "If you ever get tired of this job give me a call." She called two days later, ultimately became our Director of HR & now owns her own consulting company. All because we saw that she approached her job with passion and energy. You have passion and energy & we haven't even met yet.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Mon Apr 08, 2019 11:35 am

Omaha Cowboy wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 7:33 pm Well, all points notwithstanding, Omaha had terrible and extreme weather this year in February and March..and I do suspect this had a fairly substantial impact on flights and flight loads for the Air Canada service route..

I’m not going to dispute it was a bad winter. In February, Eppley had 7.5" of snow one day, 4.9" another and multiple days in the 1-3" (which the airport should be able to keep up with). That said, we know the airport was up 3.8% year-over-year passenger wise in February so that would lead me to believe the weather impact at Eppley itself wasn’t that significant. If weather were really really bad here compared to last February we'd expect across the board passenger decreases.

The other issue here is that “extreme weather” in-and-of-itself doesn’t really impact loads. Like I said, this flight didn’t operate on 8 of 28 days in February (many presumably due to weather at either end). Load factor is literally passengers on board versus how many seats are on the plane. Thus, on days when the flight was cancelled due to weather or other factors, there is zero impact on load factor. Poor loads can't really be blamed on "extreme weather."

Loads are however highly reliant on advanced bookings. I’m willing to entertain an argument that people don’t want to go to Toronto in the middle of winter, but that is more of an Alaska/PDX situation where data literally showed people don’t want to go on that route in the winter and Alaska learned the hard way rather than “extreme weather” impacting loads.

Omaha Cowboy wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 7:33 pm And before I start feeling nervous that OMA will lose its Air Canada route, I need to see how the flight loads are during consecutive months when the weather isn’t nearly as extreme (think May/June/July)..

In May we’ll start getting year over year data as the route was operating last year. Like joleo predicted on his year predictions I’d expect on a percentage basis it is going to look fairly good, because there is literally no where else to go but up. We know loads last Summer/Fall weren't where you'd want them to be though. I'm willing to write that as off as first year jitters, but we'll see. We'd like to see loads closer to 65-80%.

I wouldn't dismiss winter loads outright... A flight that isn't making you money even if it were only 3 or 4 months a year may not make financial sense to operate year round. Alaska gets away with the seasonal PDX flight pretty easy because they're still here on other routes year-round. A one off flight isn't impossible to operate seasonally (Iceland Air looks like they're doing MCI again this summer), but it is more difficult with staffing, and gate and terminal space leasing.
------
Weather/season/airline/airport/city-pair (route) regardless, a 33% load on an airline and airport averaging around 80% is bad. I'm still wondering if someone isn't paying for this route. If not we'll see how long Air Canada lets the experiment play out.

Garrett · Post by **Garrett** » Tue Apr 09, 2019 11:40 am

Bob from Omaha wrote: Mon Apr 08, 2019 11:05 am
Mr.Nuke wrote: Mon Apr 08, 2019 10:27 am
Bob from Omaha wrote: Thu Apr 04, 2019 7:10 pm Mr. Nuke, maybe you've said already but I really wonder if you're just the biggest Eppley- or Airline-geek or do you work for Eppley or some company intimately involved in the airline business?
Just a big Eppley and aviation enthusiast that happens to have a degree in financial analysis (something that is basically looking at and analyzing numbers, hence why a lot of my posts in this thread are data driven).
Just looking at it from my perch as a crusty old capitalist you could monetize your skills by putting out some sort of publication regarding the airline industry. Actually, substitute the word could with should. Back in the day when I actually owned a business I'd have offered you a job immediately and then figured out what it was I wanted you to do. We never ignored potential talent. Once, when we were having a meeting at a restaurant in Columbus, Ohio, when we asked the waitress for the check I gave her my business card & said "If you ever get tired of this job give me a call." She called two days later, ultimately became our Director of HR & now owns her own consulting company. All because we saw that she approached her job with passion and energy. You have passion and energy & we haven't even met yet.

Nuke, you could definitely get a job with an airline I’m sure.

Speaking of which, this YouTube video is interesting:
[youtube][/youtube]

Bearcat06 · Post by **Bearcat06** » Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:24 pm

Hi all. Long time lurker, first time poster. I've read up on most of the posts here and I'm hopeful Eppley maintains the growth we've seen so they can hit their next goal to continue updates. I'm fascinated by planes and airports, but I don't get to travel as much as I would like.

From what I've gathered the powers that be appear to follow the conservative mantra of the state they're tied to and don't really believe in the "if you build it, they will come" approach despite being next door to field of dreams state. It's a safe approach for sure, but can obviously be self-limiting in some respects. To be fair, Omaha will never be a hub, but it doesn't mean you can't strive to be the best in your class.

I think we could steal some ideas from some of the big boys though. I don't know about the multi-level ramps for departures and arrivals, but that area is a hot mess at times. I don't know that a new garage and rental area resolves that as most people that I know don't want to spend the big bucks on multi-day parking and will either have someone drop them off/pick up or park in the long term lots, in which case you have to go across the road anyway to get to the shuttles. DEN and ATL have decent setups with regard to this area.

Inside the terminal, I agree we need modern and light. Those baggage claim systems need to be upgraded and the ear-piercing screeching has to go. TSA Everytime I've been through has actually been pretty efficient compared to some disasters I've seen at DEN. Obviously this would probably move with a remodel. I can't see a need for anything like moving sidewalks...can't really take more than 10 minutes to cross the building even if they remodel.

Another thing would be food and retail beyond the security line. And I know everyone says there is not a need for anything fancy, but we can do better than what is currently in place. This may be an area where the build it, they will come can work. I was at ATL recently ( I know OMA will never compare) and you could eat there for a couple weeks without having the same thing twice. Think fast casual, Chipolte/Qdoba, Subway, Panda Express, McDonald's or the like (I'd take their breakfast over what we have available now), heck even some pizza places can crank out a fresh pie in under 10 minutes. Bring in something local with a brewery or bar tied to it (like the Blatt or Upstream) that has some burgers or something. Have it serve Nebraska spirits and wines as well. Have a place like a sports bar so people can catch some games while waiting for their flight. It doesn't have to be just a bar or an airline lounge/club. Local joints to give people a taste of Omaha/Nebraska like Runza or a place that uses Omaha steaks producta to cook up a meal. Maybe a diner type place that can whip up a quick breakfast or lunch.

I think there are several potential options and I bet more travelers would grab something and show up a bit earlier if there was something enticing being offered. I hate to say it, but foods that are exactly what can be picked up at a gas station aren't exactly screaming "we take pride in our ourselves and we want to be one of the best." Eppley was the first/last impression on over 5 million travelers last year to and from Omaha (yes I know many of those were likely locals), so why not make it memorable in a good way? I would like to tell people more positive things other than, "it only takes 10 minutes to get through TSA." Heck, PVR has Johnny Rockets, BK, Chile's and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co and they served 4.6 million passengers in 2017 per Wikipedia.

Also need a few more destinations, but I don't know enough about that to know how/if they could go about doing that. Maybe ScoFro needs to do more recruiting on the east coast to get families to come in through OMA, maybe we need some schools from both coasts for the CWS for their fans? Flights to Mexico would be a dream, even if it was just seasonal, can't be any longer than ORD, DEN or MSP. But the whole customs thing is a big sticking point as has been well documented previously.

Thanks for listening to the rambling...I just hope the powers that be have open minds and take advantage of the opportunity that is at hand to push Eppley into a modern facility with a vision to be a contender for best in class.

nativeomahan · Post by **nativeomahan** » Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:44 pm

Welcome Bearcat to the forum conversation!

I happen to totally agree with your observations as to Eppley. It falls so short of its potential. Rather like giving all customers a pair of well worn shoes to wear. Yeah, they get the job done, but you really wouldn’t want to show them off in public.

I’m not a sports bar person, but I totally agree that post TSA checkpoints need to have a bar that people can hang out in and catch some sports or soap operas or something, especially when you arrive and find your flight is delayed by 90 minutes.

As someone who flew through PVR 16 times last year, and is about to make my 5th appearance this year, I am amazed at how much that airport has been upgraded over the years in terms of restaurant offerings. At least 2 Starbucks, plus numerous fast food and quick casual spots, a couple of full service restaurants, and several retail shops. All the flooring is marble, and it is polished and sparkling every time I visit. The airport there is set to undergo another large upgrade in a year or two, with an additional concourse added. All that in a city the size of Lincoln.

PWL73316 · Post by **PWL73316** » Fri Apr 12, 2019 6:56 pm

nativeomahan wrote: Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:44 pm Welcome Bearcat to the forum conversation!

I happen to totally agree with your observations as to Eppley. It falls so short of its potential. Rather like giving all customers a pair of well worn shoes to wear. Yeah, they get the job done, but you really wouldn’t want to show them off in public.

I’m not a sports bar person, but I totally agree that post TSA checkpoints need to have a bar that people can hang out in and catch some sports or soap operas or something, especially when you arrive and find your flight is delayed by 90 minutes.

As someone who flew through PVR 16 times last year, and is about to make my 5th appearance this year, I am amazed at how much that airport has been upgraded over the years in terms of restaurant offerings. At least 2 Starbucks, plus numerous fast food and quick casual spots, a couple of full service restaurants, and several retail shops. All the flooring is marble, and it is polished and sparkling every time I visit. The airport there is set to undergo another large upgrade in a year or two, with an additional concourse added. All that in a city the size of Lincoln.

I was ready to tell you how wrong you were, until I looked it up and realized Puerto Vallarta actually has fewer passengers per year than Eppley. Man, that is depressing, to think about how poor our offerings are, and how outdated everything is.

Bearcat06 · Post by **Bearcat06** » Mon Apr 15, 2019 3:48 pm

PVR knows what they are and what brings in the money. Have good facilities and an efficient airport (customs is a bit chaotic, but it is in most places) and you'll make a good impression on visitors. I loved my visit there and I would wager to say checking in and getting through security on our way out wasn't any more inconvenient than Omaha. Modern and better food options past security, but it's a comparable spot despite the international issue. It doesn't really seem like much of a connection hub, which we obviously know Omaha isn't so it's not like people are going to be hanging out for four hours between flights. Comparable to OMA. Montego Bay in Jamaica would be another example, getting out of there was smooth, security was quick and a host of restaurants once you got past security. Point is, you don't have to be a connection city or one of the major 30 airports in the US to have a modern design and amenities. If your bar is set at "let's be functional" you'll do just enough to be mediocre...we all know how that turned out for Stevie P.

In other news, I heard today that Delta was moving their coach seats in the Airbus A-320s from a four-inch recline to just 2 inches.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:11 am

March up 2.9% over last March, YTD Eppley stays up 2.9%
https://www.flyoma.com/wp-content/uploa ... istics.pdf

Bearcat06 · Post by **Bearcat06** » Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:41 am

Mr.Nuke wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:11 am March up 2.9% over last March, YTD Eppley stays up 2.9%
https://www.flyoma.com/wp-content/uploa ... istics.pdf

United making up for Alaska and Southwest. 2.9% on the year isn't going to get to the 5.4 mark this year if it continues. I think a 9% increase again this year would be unheard of, but would we expect bigger increases come summer based on results from previous years.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am

Bearcat06 wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:41 am
Mr.Nuke wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:11 am March up 2.9% over last March, YTD Eppley stays up 2.9%
https://www.flyoma.com/wp-content/uploa ... istics.pdf
United making up for Alaska and Southwest. 2.9% on the year isn't going to get to the 5.4 mark this year if it continues. I think a 9% increase again this year would be unheard of, but would we expect bigger increases come summer based on results from previous years.

I think 9% is pretty much out of the question. A lot of the unknown is the 737 MAX & how Boeing & Southwest deal with it. 4% gets you to about 5,250,000. Then maybe next year OMA could get to 5.4M.

In any event, I'd concentrate on two things: One, is OMA maintaining its destinations and frequencies, and two, what is the board doing with regard to renovating and expanding the terminal? At some point they "may" release information about planning for expansion/renovation and the design build process. If OMA does keep the current list of non stop destinations and relative numbers of seats offered, positive growth can probably be maintained, and isn't that what should be top of the list for the market?

Just my opinion...I could be wrong. Nuke? What say you?

ScrattyB · Post by **ScrattyB** » Wed Apr 17, 2019 2:41 pm

Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am A lot of the unknown is the 737 MAX & how Boeing & Southwest deal with it.

What does this mean?

Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am what is the board doing with regard to renovating and expanding the terminal?

There's been a master plan for years. There was a meeting for contractors just a couple months ago. Does that answer your question?

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:14 pm

ScrattyB wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 2:41 pm
Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am A lot of the unknown is the 737 MAX & how Boeing & Southwest deal with it.
What does this mean?

Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am what is the board doing with regard to renovating and expanding the terminal?
There's been a master plan for years. There was a meeting for contractors just a couple months ago. Does that answer your question?

As for the 737MAX, google it or read a newspaper.

I am well aware of the master plan and the contractors meeting. My question is what is the status as of now. It was on the agenda of one of the board meetings. I am asking for an update. So to sum it up, no, that doesn't answer my question. (sorry for the minor snark. I'm tired)

ScrattyB · Post by **ScrattyB** » Thu Apr 18, 2019 9:59 am

Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:14 pm As for the 737MAX, google it or read a newspaper.

Explain why you think this would effect numbers in Omaha.
Did WN ever fly the MAX to Omaha? It only makes up 4.5% of their fleet.

Personally, I don't believe it would affect numbers, but I could see how some people might be scared to fly after the news. Is that the point you were trying to make?

nativeomahan · Post by **nativeomahan** » Thu Apr 18, 2019 8:59 pm

ScrattyB wrote: Thu Apr 18, 2019 9:59 am
Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 9:14 pm As for the 737MAX, google it or read a newspaper.
Explain why you think this would effect numbers in Omaha.
Did WN ever fly the MAX to Omaha? It only makes up 4.5% of their fleet.

Personally, I don't believe it would affect numbers, but I could see how some people might be scared to fly after the news. Is that the point you were trying to make?

I have flown the max to Omaha, from Denver.

ScrattyB · Post by **ScrattyB** » Fri Apr 19, 2019 9:51 am

nativeomahan wrote: Thu Apr 18, 2019 8:59 pm I have flown the max to Omaha, from Denver.

Thanks!

joleo · Post by **joleo** » Mon Apr 22, 2019 7:07 pm

OMA-LAX on Southwest dropped a few days ago for the month of June and not bookable for July because of 737 Max plane shortages. This was not a Max route but they moved planes around and dropped their least profitable routes...most of them were long routes. This was one of the shortest dropped. The times this summer were terrible on this route so bookings were probably weak.

OMA-LAX M-F 620 PM DEPARTURE. Sunday was a 10pm departure from OMA.

LAX-OMA good times M-F leaving at 9am. Sunday it left so late it arrived Omaha at 2am early Monday morning! Not sure what they were thinking here. I just don't see how this would have booked up.

Either way, it is gone for June and July it shows sold out.

It is still around for the fall with much better times.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Tue Apr 23, 2019 11:59 am

Bob from Omaha wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:32 am Just my opinion...I could be wrong. Nuke? What say you?

I pretty much agree on the traffic/destination/routes comments.

ScrattyB wrote: Thu Apr 18, 2019 9:59 am Explain why you think this would effect numbers in Omaha.
Did WN ever fly the MAX to Omaha? It only makes up 4.5% of their fleet.

Southwest was rotating a Max through Omaha on the weekends up to the grounding and at times routing a STL-OMA-DEN plane through. That is largely besides the point though, because looking at it in that simplistic of terms actually neglects quite a bit.

I show the Max’s currently are 6.3% of their fleet based on Wikipedia, but regardless if we say Southwest can’t fly 4.5% to 6.3% of their fleet that isn’t an insignificant number at all. With 34 planes in the fleet and if we say on average they’ll fly 4-7 times a day that 136 to 238 flights every day that Southwest lost.

Especially with this having become clear that the “fix” wasn’t going to be coming anytime soon (it is looking like some point this summer now) Southwest isn’t simply going to drop the routes or frequencies the Max was on. Many of those routes were probably highly profitable for Southwest. What they’re going to do and what they signaled in the OAG filing this weekend is they’re basically looking at everything systemwide and re-evaluating what to drop. How can they minimize the impact to the network and their bottom line? American and United are probably doing the exact same thing, but both may have a little more flexibility with regional fleets.

joleo wrote: Mon Apr 22, 2019 7:07 pm OMA-LAX on Southwest dropped a few days ago for the month of June and not bookable for July because of 737 Max plane shortages. This was not a Max route but they moved planes around and dropped their least profitable routes...most of them were long routes.

I don’t know that I buy the analysis from over there as completely accurate in the sense we don’t know that they were dropping their least profitable routes without the actual yield data, something non of those posters access (while fully acknowledging that these clearly weren’t near their most profitable routes otherwise an effort would’ve been made to save them). It is the longer routes part of it that is probably the bigger factor. Given limited resources I.e. suddenly losing 34 planes, they probably can make more money, and keep more of their schedule operating by sidelining these longer routes that tie up planes for longer periods of time. If you are getting a couple of more turns out of the planes by keeping them on shorter routes by cancelling the longer ones, that is going to be more profitable nearly every time.

ScrattyB · Post by **ScrattyB** » Tue Apr 23, 2019 12:17 pm

I still don't see how if changes Omaha's numbers though. If I need to go to Los Angeles, I'm going to go. Maybe now I have to make a connection, but I still need to go.

WN needs to fix their website so I can book flights from Omaha to Hawaii (even though it's cheaper on other airlines, I just want their website to price it for me)

milesej05 · Post by **milesej05** » Wed Apr 24, 2019 8:47 am

Eppley FINALLY got new ticket machines!!!

Everytime I would park in the garage and attempt to leave, none of my credit cards would work so I would have to back up and go to the booth that had a person in it. I also had multiple co-workers say the same thing when using their company credit cards.

nativeomahan · Post by **nativeomahan** » Thu Apr 25, 2019 9:48 am

I noticed last week that the parking garage now has their new exiting/pay structure up and running. The ticket guy told me that they hope to have the new garage open in June.

GenX · Post by **GenX** » Thu Apr 25, 2019 10:20 am

Bearcat06 wrote: Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:24 pm Inside the terminal, I agree we need modern and light. Those baggage claim systems need to be upgraded and the ear-piercing screeching has to go.

The annoying baggage claim buzzer has been replaced with a gentle tone and a voice that warns people to step away from the belt.

Bearcat06 · Post by **Bearcat06** » Thu Apr 25, 2019 1:32 pm

EricHaley wrote: Thu Apr 25, 2019 10:20 am
Bearcat06 wrote: Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:24 pm Inside the terminal, I agree we need modern and light. Those baggage claim systems need to be upgraded and the ear-piercing screeching has to go.
The annoying baggage claim buzzer has been replaced with a gentle tone and a voice that warns people to step away from the belt.

That is fantastic news. One check mark off the list. The only good thing about the old system is it would wake you up if you were sleep walking through the airport after a late arrival.

joleo · Post by **joleo** » Sat Apr 27, 2019 1:34 pm

Any word on new rental facility being done by Berkshire next week? Has anybody heard or driven by lately?

Ben · Post by **Ben** » Mon Apr 29, 2019 4:35 pm

Its got to be close. New road signs were being put up as I flew out last week. Looking in the garage itself, all of the various rental car company signs are up, and the exterior facade has all been installed.. Hard to see into the I was flying out of the south concourse, so I didn't get to peer into the glass rental car counter building to see how close it was.

ScrattyB · Post by **ScrattyB** » Tue Apr 30, 2019 8:06 am

joleo wrote: Sat Apr 27, 2019 1:34 pm Any word on new rental facility being done by Berkshire next week? Has anybody heard or driven by lately?

3 posts up from yours a guy said June.
I was just by there an hour ago. There are no cars in there, and the workers are still working on it.

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Wed May 01, 2019 1:38 pm

ScrattyB wrote: Tue Apr 23, 2019 12:17 pm I still don't see how if changes Omaha's numbers though. If I need to go to Los Angeles, I'm going to go. Maybe now I have to make a connection, but I still need to go.

WN needs to fix their website so I can book flights from Omaha to Hawaii (even though it's cheaper on other airlines, I just want their website to price it for me)

In this case, on the face of it, it probably doesn’t matter all that much (especially if you are operating under the scenario that you need to go to LA (not everyone does though)). LAX is one of Omaha’s strongest O/D destinations, there is still another airline serving it directly, there are multiple airlines including SW that will one stop you there, and said airlines have excess capacity right now. The other slight factor here year-over-year number wise is this that this is effectively going to end up being a route swap. When Southwest temporarily drops LAX, the SAN starts right away. So Year-over-year their shouldn’t be a negative impact here to SW or the airport (although they're arguablly should've been a positive impact had the LAX route been retained).

Overall though, available seats are one of if not the greatest ways of stimulating increased demand at a given airport. Losing essentially a flight a day probably is going to have an impact on the growth numbers this summer. Yes a large part of the loss of this flight will be absorbed be 1) the SAN flight and 2) by SW flights heading West as all other airlines given available capacity (as seen by the 1x SW MDW loss in Q1 this year other airlines absorbed the passengers, but still…). Furthermore, the fact that SW (the dominant carrier here) is capacity constrained due to the Max grounding has the potential to further negatively impact capacity increases system wide and Omaha wise this Spring/Summer. It is pretty clear Southwest isn't going to be passenger positive here this year and for an airline that carries roughly 1/3 of the passengers here that is a pretty big deal.

Like I said though one flight especially given airlines have spare capacity here right now isn't a huge deal. A few more, and it becomes problematic.

joleo wrote: Sat Apr 27, 2019 1:34 pm Any word on new rental facility being done by Berkshire next week? Has anybody heard or driven by lately?

You couldn’t pick a worse week to open this and even if they’re ready I think they know this.

iamjacobm · Post by **iamjacobm** » Wed May 08, 2019 9:15 am

They put together a pretty informative page for airport parking.

https://www.flyoma.com/learn-about-parkoma/

Maybe it was already known, I don't remember, but this says they will start working on modernizing the existing garage once the new one is open. Also says the north economy lot will have gained 50% more stalls and the canopy lot used for rentals now will be ready for parking this fall.

Uffda · Post by **Uffda** » Wed May 08, 2019 10:31 am

I looked at the prices for the Economy lots and I think I will stay with ParkNGo or Budget - they are both around $5/day

Mr.Nuke · Post by **Mr.Nuke** » Sat May 11, 2019 1:52 pm

The World-Herald just posted an article behind their subscriber pay wall that doesn't include a lot of new information, but it does give us who won the contract. Holder Construction won the design/build and Corgan Architects is on the team as well. Preliminary designs are due at some point in the Fall.
https://www.omaha.com/news/plus/eppley- ... ade4c.html

https://www.corgan.com/our-work/aviation/
http://www.holderconstruction.com/projects/

jag42 · Post by **jag42** » Sat May 11, 2019 3:27 pm

While they are at it...could they please take "Airfield" out of the name and put in "Airport"....

Post by **Omaha Cowboy** » Sat May 11, 2019 8:15 pm

jag42 wrote: Sat May 11, 2019 3:27 pm While they are at it...could they please take "Airfield" out of the name and put in "Airport"....

I don’t like to use the word “never” very often..

But I’m pretty confident on the Eppley naming issue, that’ll probably never happen...

Ciao..LiO...Peace

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Sat May 11, 2019 9:48 pm

Mr.Nuke wrote: Sat May 11, 2019 1:52 pm The World-Herald just posted an article behind their subscriber pay wall that doesn't include a lot of new information, but it does give us who won the contract. Holder Construction won the design/build and Corgan Architects is on the team as well. Preliminary designs are due at some point in the Fall.
https://www.omaha.com/news/plus/eppley- ... ade4c.html

https://www.corgan.com/our-work/aviation/
http://www.holderconstruction.com/projects/

I'm guessing it'll be publicly available in a week or 10 days. Maybe sooner.

nativeomahan · Post by **nativeomahan** » Sat May 11, 2019 10:34 pm

I read the W-H article. Not a lot new, other than the estimated cost to rebuild the existing terminal is $500M and it would not be completed until passenger counts top 7M a year. The two satellite terminals would be junked for one long linear terminal. The absolute earliest this would be built and in use is 5 years down the road.

Stargazer · Post by **Stargazer** » Sun May 12, 2019 8:47 am

Let's not confuse folks here... the 7 million figure is when -further- extension of the north and extension of the south concourses occurs.

ie

After an initial renovation and expansion, fully extended north and south concourses are projected to happen once Eppley reaches 7 million passengers.

The terminal expansion and extended north concourse is what's in motion here... triggered by passing the 5 million mark.

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Sun May 12, 2019 1:35 pm

Ok, so I get the concept of demand driven. However, I wonder if it would be completely out of the question to just do the better part of the plan now. What I mean is redo the terminal and add onto now, reconstruct the entire south gates and if you really feel the need to wait for 7M, wait on the addition of four gates on the north end. Is it really cheaper to wait and have costs go up?

I remember when the current configuration was done in the 80s (I think). It was a mess while they did it and there was this convoluted driveway that went from the old south end to the new north end but we muddled through while they did it and when it was finished we were all thrilled with the end result. Eppley went from, and those on the Des Moines forum will forgive me, an airport that was very Des Moines Airport-like but really not even that nice, to what Eppley is now.

I know it's betting on the come and Omaha doesn't do that very much but Oklahoma City did it. OKC is a very nice airport and a great gateway to the city. I just can't think of a reason for OMA not to jump into the deep end of the pool now.

Ryan Air · Post by **Ryan Air** » Sun May 12, 2019 3:03 pm

I believe the north concourse expansion and CUP are going to be right away- the terminal expansion and renovations will be shortly behind with those two projects completed within 5 years (former sooner than 5 years, latter by the end of 5 years). Conservative passenger growth projections seem to agree. The elimination and expansion of south concourse and the final extension of the north will be at the 7 million mark or outside 5 years, closer to 7-10.

You see Delta added LAX? Starts November

damonhynes · Post by **damonhynes** » Mon May 13, 2019 9:30 am

Ryan Air wrote: Sun May 12, 2019 3:03 pm I believe the north concourse expansion and CUP are going to be right away- the terminal expansion and renovations will be shortly behind with those two projects completed within 5 years (former sooner than 5 years, latter by the end of 5 years). Conservative passenger growth projections seem to agree. The elimination and expansion of south concourse and the final extension of the north will be at the 7 million mark or outside 5 years, closer to 7-10.

You see Delta added LAX? Starts November

That's nice. Another option for the next time I want to go to LAS...

RJ or mainline?

Ryan Air · Post by **Ryan Air** » Mon May 13, 2019 1:48 pm

damonhynes wrote: Mon May 13, 2019 9:30 am
Ryan Air wrote: Sun May 12, 2019 3:03 pm I believe the north concourse expansion and CUP are going to be right away- the terminal expansion and renovations will be shortly behind with those two projects completed within 5 years (former sooner than 5 years, latter by the end of 5 years). Conservative passenger growth projections seem to agree. The elimination and expansion of south concourse and the final extension of the north will be at the 7 million mark or outside 5 years, closer to 7-10.

You see Delta added LAX? Starts November
That's nice. Another option for the next time I want to go to LAS...

RJ or mainline?

RJ E175 - seasonal? Not sure about that.
Leaves OMA at 7:00 A.M.
Return leaves LAX 17:40, arriving OMA 22:55

damonhynes · Post by **damonhynes** » Mon May 13, 2019 2:06 pm

Ryan Air wrote: Mon May 13, 2019 1:48 pm
damonhynes wrote: Mon May 13, 2019 9:30 am
Ryan Air wrote: Sun May 12, 2019 3:03 pm I believe the north concourse expansion and CUP are going to be right away- the terminal expansion and renovations will be shortly behind with those two projects completed within 5 years (former sooner than 5 years, latter by the end of 5 years). Conservative passenger growth projections seem to agree. The elimination and expansion of south concourse and the final extension of the north will be at the 7 million mark or outside 5 years, closer to 7-10.

You see Delta added LAX? Starts November
That's nice. Another option for the next time I want to go to LAS...

RJ or mainline?
RJ E175 - seasonal? Not sure about that.
Leaves OMA at 7:00 A.M.
Return leaves LAX 17:40, arriving OMA 22:55

Cool beans. Thanks!

Bob from Omaha · Post by **Bob from Omaha** » Mon May 13, 2019 4:16 pm

Stargazer wrote: Sun May 12, 2019 8:47 am Let's not confuse folks here... the 7 million figure is when -further- extension of the north and extension of the south concourses occurs.

ie
After an initial renovation and expansion, fully extended north and south concourses are projected to happen once Eppley reaches 7 million passengers.
The terminal expansion and extended north concourse is what's in motion here... triggered by passing the 5 million mark.

I don't see it in this graphic but a long time ago in a similar graphic there was another garage right behind the new south gates.

http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=28vf7np ... NnhJqR7lpg