NEWS FEATURE

United Airlines
will ferry more golfers to Myrtle Beach from Chicago, D.C.

(July 26, 2004) ? Myrtle Beach tourism and northern golfers got a boost last week when United Airlines announced it will start daily, direct flights from its Chicago and Washington, D.C., airports.

Regional air carrier Air Wisconsin will begin twice-daily flights from Chicago O?Hare and four daily flights from Washington?s Dulles airport in mid-February. Tickets went on sale Thursday.

"We know that increased air service into the Myrtle Beach area has a direct impact on our golf rounds," Stephen Greene of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce told TravelGolf.com. "You can look at the percentages of increased passenger traffic and literally watch the rounds of golf mirror that."

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There are no current direct flights to Dulles and direct flights to Chicago only on weekends. Both Chicago and Washington are considered strong markets for Myrtle Beach.

"Chicago in particular is one of the top three destination for us for golfers coming into the market," Greene said. "Hooters also flies out of Gary, Indiana, so these direct flights have a significant impact on us, just because of the ease of getting down here you can make that last minute travel decision, maybe come down and play golf for the weekend."

The announcement comes at a time when Myrtle Beach is producing strong air-related numbers at its airport.

Myrtle Beach International Airport announced recently that the number of passengers climbed more than 28 percent the first half of this year compared to the first six months of 2003. The number increased 16 percent last month compared to June of last year.

The airport recently said it would spend $3 million on temporary expansion, before its new terminal is scheduled to open in 2007.

The new flights are part of an 11-market expansion for the airline, which, like other major carriers after Sept. 11, has seen more than its share of recent financial troubles.

This week, United?s bid for a federal loan guarantee was rejected, after a two-year attempt. On Thursday, the airline said it had secured $1 billion in new financing to help restructure its Chapter 11 problems, according to the company. United filed for bankruptcy in December 2002.

The loan guarantee rejection for United helps Myrtle Beach and its $5 billion tourism industry in other ways. The South Carolina city?s airport has expanded largely because of its smaller, lower-fare airlines, like AirTran, Spirit, ComAir and ASA.

United and its low-cost carriers, Air Wisconsin, which operates as United Express, and Ted, operate more than 3,500 flights a day.