Paul Lewis/WASHINGTON DC
SkyWest Airlines intends to expand its western US regional network further with its newly announced purchase of 25 Bombardier Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ) 200LRs, while longer-term planning is focused on finding a smaller jet or turboprop replacement for its Embraer EMB-120 Brasilias.
"We've grown by 35% over the last 18 months and the airline has almost doubled in size in terms of departures," says SkyWest chief operating officer Ron Reber.
SkyWest wants to take advantage of the new aircraft's 650km (1,200nm) range to extend routes beyond its current average 240-270km stage length. The new CRJ-200LR will overcome weight restrictions between the carrier's Salt Lake City hub and Omaha and permit non-stop services from its other major hub at Denver to points in the US Pacific Northwest.
The carrier says that it is now in discussion with its two main partner airlines to identify new routes and city destinations. About 70% of Skywest's 1,000 daily departures are codeshares with United Express, while the remainder are Delta Air Lines connections. "Of our first 15 CRJ-200s, 10 will go to United Express services and five to Delta," says Reber.
The Utah-based carrier now operates 84 owned and leased Brasilias and 11 CRJ- 100ERs. The new CRJ-200s will replace the Brasilias on only five routes, which SkyWest declines to identify for "competitive reasons". Reber adds: "There are few Brasilia routes that we could turn into CRJ routes- they serve a good mission and we plan to continue using them until a replacement can be determined."
While most US regional carriers are choosing to phase out turboprops in favour of new jets, SkyWest considers that a turboprop will still be needed to maintain frequency and operating economics on shorter routes.
Source: Flight International
