Denver International Airport struck a deal with Frontier Airlines and United Airlines that gives the competing airlines room to grow at the nation’s sixth busiest airport.
For Frontier, the agreement announced Tuesday means more space at DIA to add flights on Concourse A.
For United, it means lower costs and a long-awaited regional jet facility as the carrier struggles to cut costs and fly more passengers on regional jets instead of larger airliners.
The $41.5 million regional jet facility will be built by DIA on the east end of Concourse B and will open in 2007.
“I think both have come out ahead,” DIA manager Turner West said. “It’s in the best interest of our community for both of those companies to do well.”
United, the largest carrier at DIA with most of its operations on Concourse B, will give up six gates by mid-2007 on Concourse A used for its Ted operation.
That means less hassle for travelers connecting in Denver between Ted and other United flights because they won’t need to shuttle between concourses to make their connections.
It’s “certainly much more convenient for our passengers,” said United spokesman Brandon Borrman.
Frontier, which has been asking for more gates as it increases flights from its Denver hub, will take the gates on the A concourse from United. Thatcould mean more options for travelers with more flights.
“We have just not had the space to grow in the most optimal way,” said Frontier spokesman Andrew Hudson. “This will secure Denver as Frontier’s hub in the long term and it’s going to allow us to grow.”
Frontier, which flies 20.5 percentcq of DIA’s domestic passengers, has 16 gates on Concourse A, and will have 22 afterwards.
United will move its Ted flights to five Concourse B gates where it is installing dual-end loading bridges to get passengers on and off planes more quickly.
United, which flies 56.8 percentcq of DIA’s domestic passengers, has 75 spaces on Concourse A and B, and will have 75 on B afterwards, with a greater share of regional jet spaces.
Last December, DIA erased part of United’s debt for its failed automated baggage system. In Tuesday’s agreement, DIA said it will pay off the remaining $110 million debt to bondholders on the bag-system debt.
Tuesday’s deal is a second go-around at a similar agreement between DIA, Frontier and United in November 2003. Back then, DIA agreed to build a $42.5 million expansion for Frontier on Concourse A and a $40 million regional jet facility for United on Concourse B.
But neither of those projects were built. The new regional jet facility plan is a scaled-down version of the old design.
DIA said it will benefit by not having to spend $116 million for additional gates for Frontier, and will not have to help airlines pay for more than $55 million in costs for the regional jet facility.
Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines, which started flying out of Denver in January, has not announced anything that requires new projects now, according to Cohen-Vader.
Separately, Frontier said it has chosen Linhart McClain Finlon Public Relations for its outside public relations firm to expand the company’s national exposure.
Staff writer Kelly Yamanouchi can be reached at 303-820-1488 or at kyamanouchi@denverpost.com.
