Aspen tourism and lodging officials are keeping a close watch on United Airlines.
The bankrupt airline announced in April it was ending its contract with regional air carrier Air Wisconsin Airlines Corp. as a cost-cutting measure.
That leaves United with nothing larger than 37-seat planes that are certified to handle the high-end tourist destination. Air Wisconsin flies 88-seat planes into Aspen.
Eighty percent of Aspen’s winter traffic arrives by air, yet only a small number of commercial planes can land at Aspen’s challenging high-altitude airport.
“It’s an important issue for us, no doubt,” said Bill Tomcich, president of Stay Aspen/Snowmass, the largest lodging reservation agency in the area. He serves as the Aspen business community’s liaison with United.
“There absolutely are some concerns, but I have United’s top assurances that they are going to find a solution. We are a very high-fare market, so obviously it’s very important that they continue to serve this market.”
United is by far the largest of the three carriers that serve the Roaring Fork Valley. United Express flies 90,000 passengers into and out of Aspen during an average winter.
Northwest Airlines carries 18,000 visitors, and America West carries 3,000.
Air Wisconsin will continue to fly United’s routes into the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport until April. No long-term solution has been announced, nor will United say when to expect one, although it is already selling seats on next summer’s flights.
Choices include partnering with another regional carrier, such as with Mesaba Airlines, which flies Northwest passengers into Aspen; extending its Air Wisconsin contract; or introducing a new carrier.
“We don’t have a time frame for announcing a solution, but we are actively working on identifying one,” United spokesman Jeff Green said.
Rob Henderson, director of sales and marketing at the St. Regis Aspen, said the hotel is not yet concerned enough to begin plotting alternative ways to transport customers.
“We don’t have any kind of contingency plans in place,” he said.
“There are other airports in the state we could get people to, but they’re not five minutes from our hotel. There is a convenience factor there that a lot of our guests expect.”
Staff writer Julie Dunn can be reached at 303-820-1592 or jdunn@denverpost.com.
