Midway Airlines plans to bolster frequencies, capacity and reduce seat kilometre costs on its eastern US network with the delivery this month of the first of 17 Boeing 737-700s. It will also receive further smaller, 50-seat, Bombardier Canadair Regional Jets (CRJs) next year.
The carrier, based in Raleigh/ Durham, North Carolina, has been constrained by the size of its eight 98-seat Fokker 100s, according to David Thomas, Midway route planning director. "We don't plan to add any new routes for a while, but rather add capacity on Fokker 100 routes," he says.
Midway will take delivery of a second 128-seat 737 on a five-year operating lease from GE Capital Aviation Services in January. It will be followed in September by the first of 15 aircraft ordered from Boeing, with two more arriving in October and November. Delivery schedules call for another six 737s to enter service in 2001, and the last six the following year.
"The Fokkers are not the most economical aircraft to operate and compare poorly to the 737 in terms of seat mile costs," says Thomas. Midway plans to return four of the aircraft to lessor debis AirFinance by the end of 2003 and is looking at options to keep the remaining four, which are not due to be returned before 2013. In the interim, Midway plans to redeploy the Fokker 100s onto some of its CRJ-200 routes once the first 737 enters revenue service in February.
The carrier operates 18 of the 50-seat jets and will take delivery of five more next year and three in 2001. It is looking at converting its remaining four options to increase the total fleet to 30 CRJs by December 2003. It also holds options on 10 more 737-700s.
Source: Flight International
