News

Northwest Airlines says no cuts planned for Rapid City
By Dan Daly, Journal Staff Writer

RAPID CITY — Northwest Airlines, faced with soaring fuel prices and first-half 2005 losses of $4 million per day, is reported to be considering flying smaller aircraft and offering fewer seats to a number of its markets beginning Oct. 1.

But Kurt Ebenhoch, company spokesman, said Wednesday afternoon that Northwest's Minneapolis-Rapid City route should experience no changes other that the annual seasonal drop to four flights per day from five.

"Other than the usual drop to four flights, we don't anticipate any October changes for Rapid City," Ebenhoch said. However, he also noted that Northwest, like the entire airline industry, is struggling.

"Like other carriers, our future plans are being affected by record high fuel costs, by competitors' price actions that have decreased revenues and by general over capacity in the industry," he said.

In a news release in late July, Neal Cohen, Northwest's executive vice president and chief financial officer, said the company's priority is to reduce costs — primarily by cutting the amount it spends on labor and pensions.

Currently, Northwest is locked in tense negotiations with the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association on a new contract for the airline's mechanics. The strike deadline is midnight Saturday. However, if the mechanics walk off the job at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, Northwest vows to continue its full flight schedule.

"In addition," Cohen added, "the company continues to review market conditions to better match supply with demand. Northwest now anticipates reducing its mainline system capacity by 3 to 4 percent in the fourth quarter. With no reduction in near-term fuel prices expected, it is imperative that we act quickly."

Meanwhile, in North Dakota, the Associated Press reported that Northwest has told local airport officials there that all four North Dakota markets served by Northwest could experience 10 percent cuts in the number of available seats.

Ebenhoch said Northwest in North Dakota operates the same number of flights all year. The company has decided to take 30 of the big DC9s out of its fleet. That means North Dakota passengers will be flying aboard smaller aircraft beginning Oct. 1.

But he noted the Rapid City schedule for Oct. 1, published on the Northwest Airlines Web site, is similar to past years' fall schedule. On Wednesday, the site listed three round-trip flights aboard full-size McDonnell Douglas DC9 jets and one flight aboard affiliate Mesaba Airlines Avro 85, a 69-passenger regional jet.

In the summer, Northwest's five flights per day include mostly DC9 and Airbus 319 and 320 aircraft, big planes that seat between 105 and 150 passengers. One flight per day in summer is Mesaba's Avro 85.

In July, the most recent month for which data are available, Northwest offered 12,400 airline seats on flights in and out of Rapid City. Northwest carried 11,196 passengers last month, meaning 90 percent of its seats were full, according to airport records.

Contact Dan Daly at 394-8421 or dan.daly@rapidcityjournal.com