Ready to fly

The proposed Branson Regional Airport is nearing the beginning of construction – two years after officials said it would. Thom Harrow, president of Branson Airport Authority Inc., said his group hopes to break ground on the new facility in the first quarter of 2006.

The group originally put out bids in 2003 for construction on the single-runway facility, to be housed on 900 acres southeast of Branson. Funding did not come through at that time, however, and the project was put on hold.

A turbulent market

Funding has been an issue for the entire industry since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 rocked the nation. Since 2002, United, Delta, Northwest and US Airways airlines each have filed for bankruptcy protection, citing decreased traveler volumes, increased fuel prices and industry pricing wars. Delta and Northwest, the nation’s third- and fourth-largest commercial air carriers, respectively, filed for Chapter 11 on the same day last month. On Oct. 13, Delta delisted its stock from the New York Stock Exchange due to trading prices below $1 for more than 30 days.

Amid this industry turmoil, Gary Cyr, director of aviation for the Springfield-Branson Regional Airport, said he’s intrigued by the timing of the Branson airport development.

“Airlines are parking their aircraft right now, and fuel is still an issue, even if someone pays them to fly (to a new airport),” Cyr said. “With the state of the industry what it is, and a number of airlines curtailing routes and parking aircraft to save costs, boy, all I can say is good luck to them.”

Branson Airport’s Harrow said he’s not worried about the national airlines.

“One of the basic tenets of the aviation business is that what really matters is the market, not the airlines,” he said. “As long as there’s demand, and we feel there is a tremendous amount of demand, there will be an airline that will serve this market. We’re not terribly concerned with which one at this point.”

Demand has been up lately at the Springfield airport, a city-owned entity. Traveler numbers were 25 percent above last year through the end of July, even though 2004’s 722,000 passengers was a new record for the facility.

Despite the proximity to the Springfield facility, Cyr said he’s not overly concerned about the impact of a new airport.

“I don’t know how they could compete with our structure for landing fees and rents, on an open, competitive basis, without them providing some sort of incentives to go in there,” he said, adding that the Springfield airport added Branson to its name more as a geographical identifier than an indicator of its service area. “We know that about 30 percent of our traffic here will spend a day in Branson. Studies have shown that. Will that be the direct shot for the airlines to go there? I don’t know.”

Meanwhile, plans are in the works for a possible renovation and redesign for the Boone County Regional Airport in Harrison, Ark., according to Jess Coker of Bransonfuntrip.com, one of the companies involved in the plans. The new facility would have a more regional appeal, marketed toward the Branson and Eureka Springs areas. Harrison is 35 miles south of Branson and 80 miles from Springfield.

Coker referred further questions on the facility to Jim Flynn of Bransonfuntrip’s parent company Rubloff Jet Express in Rockford, Ill. Flynn could not be reached for comment at press time.

Forging onward

Harrow, who also is president of Connecticut financial advising firm Harrow & Co., said the investment group is continuing to make headway on the Branson project.

“We are making very good progress in terms of both design (and) construction and engineering issues, as well as rounding up the financing,” he said.

“We have the designs largely done. We have a contractor selected, we have a contract price finalized, and we hope to be able to go to market to get financing by the end of the year.”

He added that, if things continue according to plan, the group hopes to have the facility operational by the end of 2007.

The airport would be privately financed; Harrow said it would be the first privately developed commercial airport in the United States.

He declined to disclose the cost of the proposed facility or the details of negotiations with several airlines to supply services there.

The facility would hold one 7,100-foot runway – long enough for all but wide-bodied aircraft. The runway could be expanded to 9,000 feet, which would allow for all commercial-size aircraft.

Harrow declined to comment on the status of a construction contract for the airport.

Harrow took over leadership of the company earlier this year; Harrow said that former group leader Rod Murphy left the project to pursue other ventures.

Branson Airport Authority Inc. is owned by Branson Airport LLC, a group that also owns Patch Development, which owns the airport land, and Aviation Facilities Co., a Virginia company that specializes in the development of airports and transportation facilities.

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