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ATA to stop local service

In a surprise, St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport will lose its dominant carrier in April.

By STEVE HUETTEL
Published January 27, 2005

ST. PETERSBURG - Financially wobbly ATA Airlines, long the dominant carrier at St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport, will stop flying from here in April.

The airline announced plans Wednesday to drastically cut back flights from Indianapolis, site of its headquarters, in an effort to overhaul its schedule and survive a reorganization in bankruptcy court.

But airport director Noah Lagos said an airline executive told him Wednesday afternoon that ATA would cut all five daily roundtrip flights, three to Indianapolis and two to Chicago's Midway International Airport, effective April 10.

"I was shocked, totally shocked," Lagos said. "We'd been led to believe they'd start reviewing (their schedule) in April. But there was never any discussion of them pulling out of our marketplace."

The decision leaves St. Petersburg-Clearwater International with only a fraction of the flights it had last year, when 1.33-million passengers used the airport. ATA handled half of those travelers.

The airport's No. 2 carrier, Largo-based Southeast Airlines, shut down Nov. 30, leaving thousands of passengers in the lurch and 364 employees out of work. The airline was flying about 25 percent of passengers at St. Petersburg-Clearwater.

That leaves USA 3000 as the largest carrier, with 30 flights per week to destinations including Detroit, New York, Cleveland, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and St. Louis, but no flights on Saturdays. It had about 25 percent of the market at St. Petersburg-Clearwater International last year.

St. Petersburg-Clearwater airport officials were unsure how many local ATA employees would be affected by the cuts.

Cutthroat competition, low fares and record fuel prices have rocked the airline industry, which is expected to report losses between $7-billion and $8-billion for 2004.

ATA filed for bankruptcy in October, joining United Airlines and US Airways in trying to reorganize finances under a judge's supervision. The nation's No. 11 airline, ATA last month agreed to sell leases on six gates at Midway to Southwest Airlines and partner with the big discounter on flights out of Chicago.

Its game plan called for building its presence at Indianapolis. But competitors including Northwest Airlines began beefing up their Indianapolis flying.

On Wednesday, ATA cited "fierce competition" in its hometown for slashing its schedule to four daily flights. J. George Mikelsons, ATA's founder and chief executive, told the Indianapolis Star last month that big airlines typically move in on weak competitors.

"The moment there's a financial problem, they're here," he said.

ATA announced plans to cut 23 daily flights from Indianapolis to 12 U.S. destinations, including Sarasota and Fort Lauderdale. The airline said it will contact customers holding tickets for canceled flights to offer alternate accommodations.

ATA will continue an agreement with Southwest to sell tickets on each other's flights, officials said, but didn't reveal where the airline will fly besides one daily roundtrip each from Indianapolis to Orlando, Fort Myers, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

"I think they're fighting for their very existence," Lagos said.

Last month, Pinellas County commissioners approved a controversial master plan for the local airport that calls for spending up to $223-million over the next 25 years.

Residents from Feather Sound, Safety Harbor and other communities have filled public halls since July 2003 to object to the plan and a runway extension project approved in May. Many complained about airport noise and questioned why a major investment is needed when Tampa International Airport is across the bay.

County staffers have called the document a conceptual plan that addresses issues at the airport, which serves commercial passengers, charter flights, general aviation traffic and cargo shipping companies.

Each of the proposed projects, along with their financing, would have to come back to the commission for individual votes.

The plan is still a valid development blueprint, Lagos said. It includes a "pay-as-you-go" plans for expanding the airport terminal as new carriers are recruited.

"With ATA exiting, it may have an effect on when we can afford to build it," Lagos said.

Steve Huettel can be reached at huettel@sptimes.com or 813 226-3384.

ATA Airlines will stop flying out of St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport effective April 10. The airline says agents will be contacting customers who have tickets for flights after that, and will offer "a variety of options." For more information, call toll-free, 1-800-435-9282.

[Last modified January 27, 2005, 00:57:34]