Newcomer to offer nonstop flights to three cities in California

ExpressJet Airlines will launch two nonstop flights from Spokane to Los Angeles on April 2 and then add five more daily flights to Sacramento and San Diego, the company is expected to announce today.

The Houston-based air carrier is launching flights to 24 cities this spring, choosing locations that currently don’t have nonstop service, said spokeswoman Kristy Nicholas.

“Spokane is a growing economy and it doesn’t have nonstops to those (three California) markets,” said Nicholas. “We think it’s an opportunity to provide convenient air travel for those cities.”

As air traffic increases nationwide, more passengers are looking for simple nonstop flights, she said. “Time really is money, and people don’t want to spend seven hours to get somewhere but only be in the air for four or five hours.”

Airfares for the three California destinations will be announced this week and will be comparable to other carriers, added Nicholas.

ExpressJet will launch three daily round trips from Spokane to Sacramento on April 9. It will add two daily nonstops to San Diego on June 4.

All ExpressJet flights will leave Spokane International Airport from the C Concourse, the same used by Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air.

The main hub for ExpressJet’s new flights will be Los Angeles Ontario International Airport. The two daily flights from Spokane will land there, rather than Los Angeles International Airport, 65 miles to the west.

The only airline now flying nonstop from Spokane to Los Angeles International is Alaska Airlines. In the summer, Horizon will add nonstops from Spokane to Los Angeles and to Sacramento.

ExpressJet is also adding flights from Boise to Los Angeles Ontario on April 12 and to San Diego on May 14.

Until 2002, ExpressJet was a subsidiary of Continental Airlines. It became an independent company and now flies 205 jets for its former parent as Continental Express. The new service will be offered under the ExpressJet Airlines name.

The new routes will use 50-seat regional jets equipped with satellite radio, redesigned seats and other amenities, said Nicholas.

In addition to free satellite radio, passengers on flights two hours or longer will receive a complimentary meal, likely to be a sandwich and pasta, Nicholas said. Also, passengers on all flights will be able to buy beers for $1 apiece. ExpressJet will offer frequent-flier miles as well, she said.

Spokane’s new ExpressJet service will mean the addition of 18 jobs at the Spokane airport, including a station manager, supervisors, ground handling crew and counter staff.

When the airline announced its new flights a week ago, investment analysts worried ExpressJet was facing heavy headwinds in a cost-conscious industry. They cited Independence Air, a similar new airline that started in 2003 but went bankrupt by 2006.

Nicholas said ExpressJet is better positioned to succeed. It already has a steady cash stream from the 205 jets being flown for Continental, she said.

“In addition ExpressJet brings extraordinary reliability and customer service to the cities it serves,” she said. “We operated 50,000 flights in December and only had 17 maintenance cancellations. That’s very good.”