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America West Boosts its Las Vegas Presence

Citing strong ticket sales among late-night, leisure and business travelers, America West Airlines has upped its stake in Las Vegas.

On Saturday, the Tempe, Ariz.-based airline introduced daily nonstop service between McCarran International Airport and Eugene, Ore. The move raised to 38 the number of airports America West serves directly from Las Vegas, up from 32 a year ago.

America West also increased its number of daily trips between Las Vegas and Denver, Phoenix, San Diego, San Jose, Calif., and San Francisco, and also reintroduced seasonal service to Mexico City. Vice President Ron Cole said all the moves were part of a strategy to increase the carrier's presence at McCarran, the world's 11th-busiest airport.

"If we're not No. 1, we want to be one of the two most important players in that market," Cole said.

Last year, America West was McCarran's second-busiest carrier based on passenger arrivals and departures. Its 5.48 million passenger total trailed only Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, which carried 10.8 million passengers through Las Vegas a year ago.

The carriers retained their respective No. 1 and No. 2 positions at McCarran in January; February passenger traffic reports will be released in mid-March.

Kenneth Feldman, America West's vice president of marketing, attributed his airline's local growth to the city's ongoing development as well as its reputation as a popular leisure destination. In addition, Las Vegas' 24-hour lifestyle makes it an ideal evening hub for late-night flight operations, Feldman said.

Though he declined to quantify his answer, Cole said Las Vegas-related business has "a very significant (positive) impact" on the company's finances.

Approximately 15 percent of the carrier's seating capacity is allocated to Las Vegas, which is also the No. 1 market for its America West Vacations travel planning division. "If you look at the revenues we generate on the leisure side, the majority of them are Las Vegas-related," Cole said.

America West Holdings Corp. on Jan. 23 reported a fourth-quarter loss of $ 32.5 million compared with a loss of $60.9 million during the same period in 2001.

The airline has not announced further additions to its Las Vegas schedule. However, Cole said local travelers will likely see additional direct service from cities already linked to the carrier's primary hub in Phoenix, which now offers direct service to 85 cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

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