July 6, 2021 at 11:28 a.m.
United Airlines non-stop seasonal flights to O'Hare begin
SkyWest: 'It was the right thing to do'
United Airlines non-stop seasonal flights to O'Hare begin
Paired with the existing round-trip service to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, those traveling to and from Rhinelander-Oneida County now have access to two major hubs.
The daily Chicago flights are operated by SkyWest, which also provides the Delta service to and from Rhinelander and the Twin Cities.
Airport director Matthew Leitner was given the lion's share of the credit for the accomplishment of getting United to consider adding 50 seats to Rhinelander coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of those who spoke at a brief ceremony Thursday morning marking the occasion said it was Leitner's tenacity that ended up swaying United to take a risk.
Leitner said once the summer service to the Windy City was announced, he knew he had to come up with something to say at the ceremony.
"And this is certainly the largest one that I have ever been a part of," he said.
He said normally thanks everyone involved, but this time the magnitude of the event was much greater.
"We, as an airport, connect people to what is important in their lives, that's what we do. And we do it passionately," Leitner said. "Everybody does it and they care about it. In the wintertime, they're out there at 1:30 in the morning clearing snow, making sure that the airport is safe for the passengers to use."
He said no matter the reason people are flying into or out of the airport, it's so they can make some kind of connection.
"And with this new service, we're enhancing that connection, we're furthering it," Leitner said. "And I think that is extremely important."
Airport commissioner Brad Kowieski said it was "amazing" to see what was taking place.
"(The flight) is continuing the legacy that began in the mind's eye of Mr. Robert Heck many, many years ago that Rhinelander should have a fully functioning airport," Kowieski said. "And I am very proud to be on a commission that is working very hard to extend that legacy and carry it into the future."
Kowieski said the airport terminal that bears Heck's name is one of the "most important buildings in northeast Wisconsin."
"It is a total economic driver, it's undeniable," Kowieski said. "It brings $40 billion before this flight into northeast Wisconsin and Oneida County. This flight will only add to that number."
He said the additional traffic aids businesses such as summer camps, industries and even serves as a jumping off point for trips to Michigan's upper peninsula.
"But also those coming here to do business. And what is happening today will only expand that." Kowieski noted.
He noted that he also served in economic development for a time and the importance of the airport came up numerous times.
"I often hear 'but for the airport, we would not be here as an industry,'" Kowieski said. "It is immensely critical that we keep this resource here and enhance the services as we continue to grow what we do here at the airport with everyone here, businesses will continue to come here. Visitors will continue to come here, they will stay and they will plant roots."
Fellow commissioner Geoffrey Weller said Leitner "spearheaded this project and never, ever let go of it."
"His commitment, his teamwork and his 'whatever it takes' attitude is - at times - over the top." Weller said. "But you have to understand, in aviation, except for planes, nothing moves quickly. So this was an idea, it's been thrown around for a little while, but it really came to life fast. During a pandemic, at a time where resources weren't really available."
Weller said the goal was to approach the "decision makers" and he and Jack Penning, managing partner at Volaire Aviation Consulting, figured that they had "a 10-percent chance that they would actually listen to us."
"And guess what? They listened to us, because they know what can be of this airport," Weller said. "So now not only do we have non-stop service to Chicago, already in place is non-stop service to Minneapolis that connects us with the world. And that is a great thing to have for our little community of 8,000-plus people."
Weller said that Leitner was the one who came up with the economic impact studies that showed that the terminal could handle the traffic increase.
"He showed that we could be successful out of Chicago to Rhinelander," Weller said. "And that hasn't happened since the 1990s, and it wasn't even jet aircraft. It was old Saabs that got there in 2 hours as opposed to 34 minutes. You can get to Chicago in 34 minutes."
Patrick Marquart, chairman of the airport commission, insisted enough could not be said about the work Leitner and the rest of the airport staff have put into making the flight a reality.
Rather than give a long speech, however, he turned the floor over to Heck.
"This is a very historic moment for this airport. This will be the first time we've had non-stop jet service to Chicago and back," Heck said. "In this case, via a major airline, United Airlines. That is something to be very, very proud of. And also, complimentary to that, the fact that we here in Rhinelander now have non-stop jet service to Minneapolis and back, via Delta Airlines."
"It doesn't get any better than that, ladies and gentlemen," he added.
He thanked Leitner, the commission and everyone else that cares about keeping the airport growing, including the airlines.
"It has been an ongoing amount of work and Matthew, you've done a heck of a job," Heck said.
Penning, whose company works with about 90 airports around the world recruiting new air service routes, said he doesn't go to a lot of first flight ceremonies.
"We've had over a 100 so far this year," Penning said. "But this one was particularly special to me."
He said that was because of how special it is for the Rhinelander community.
"The big thing I want to impress upon everybody is when an airline adds service, they're not just comparing Rhinelander to Chicago against other things they could fly out of Chicago," Penning said. "An airline is comparing this to anywhere that plane and that crew could go in the entire world. And there is so many options. Not hundreds of options for that plane, there are thousands and thousands of options for that aircraft."
"So we had to beat thousands of communities, thousands of other markets to get this service because that plane can go anywhere," he added.
He said Rhinelander "had really intense market research" that showed that the service would be a win for the airline that could help bring even more visitors from Chicago and northern Illinois. Penning said the research showed this demographic was the largest source of visitors to the area, making the route even more compelling.
He said there was a chance that last summer would have marked the launch of the service, but the pandemic put the brakes on that idea.
While the airline industry saw significant fall off during the pandemic, "we saw that the resorts up here were filling up," he added.
"That gave us the confidence that when we came out of the pandemic, this market would be stronger than it ever was before," Penning said.
That rush to fill resorts led to Delta adding an additional flight last summer, which no doubt also increased United's attention in Rhinelander.
"Rhinelander is a really special place, and you don't really get it until you've been here and seen the lakes and you've seen the forests and you've seen what it's like. We know that this route will bring many, many thousands of visitors to this region," Penning said.
Based on results in similar markets, the estimated economic impact of the Chicago flight would be $1 million "just this summer," he noted.
"Five hundred thousand dollars in new visitor spending to the area, just this summer," he added.
Getting the Chicago flight doesn't mean anything without support of local residents, he added.
"We have to use these flights, we have to fill these seats,' he said. "Because these seats have to be filled or they won't be back next summer."
Daniel Belmont, manager of network planning for SkyWest, said that the pandemic has taken its toll on both individuals and businesses. He said SkyWest has come to value the partnership it has built with the airport over the years.
"It really takes a partnership for these kinds of things to happen," Belmont said. "And it is these sorts of partnerships that allow us to thrive as an airline."
He said the one thing that grew out of the pandemic was a chance to see how airport leaders lead. He said the airport and community leaders of Rhinelander have been proactive in marketing the possibilities here.
"I get to work with a lot of different airports across the country," Belmont said. "SkyWest is a very large operation, we operate over 2,000 flights each day, but it's the time I get to spend with the Rhinelanders of the world and developing those relationships and partnerships."
"Rather than hunkering down" during the pandemic, Leitner and the airport commission kept moving forward, he said.
"Your leadership did not stop thinking, looking forward and making plans for the future," Belmont said. "That says a lot about the people here."
What Leitner and the Rhinelander contingent did was convince "one of the biggest airlines in the world to start new air service during what is arguably the most difficult time that the airlines have ever seen."
"Your average person does not go down that road," Belmont said. "And I mean that in the kindest, most honorable way that I can to Matthew and other leaders here that just didn't sit here and watch the pandemic go by and wonder when will this be over. Time was taken to collect thoughtful data and frequent phone calls and emails, both with myself and with United. And it was the right thing to do."
"It is a feather in Matthew's cap, and for this community," Belmont added.
The new flight will depart O'Hare at 9:20 a.m. and arrive in Rhinelander at 10:35 a.m. Departure for the return trip to Chicago will be at 11:15 a.m.
Delta has already brought back the third daily round-trip flight from June 2 through Aug. 30, and has added a fourth flight on Saturdays from June 5 through Aug. 14.
Jamie Taylor may be reached via email at [email protected].
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