Manchester-Boston Regional airport lack of airline service

Real World Aviation
1

Hello everyone, as a fellow person who lives in New Hampshire, I have been sticking by the news about how TF Green Airport has been getting a lot of new airlines while us here in Manchester, NH, it looks like the airport managers have given up and have not even tried once to get a new airline to fly into Manchester.
Manchester relies sooo much on Southwest, even though they cut so many routes from here, most notably to Denver. I feel as though this airport is going downhill so quick, that I feel like one of the four airlines will likely discontinue service here to Manchester.
Now look at Providence, Rhode Island. They are like Manchester when 2008 hit and they lost a lot of air service, but wait! They just gained a lot of new airlines!! How? Because their airport directors want to make traveling out of RI more convenient for people living in Providence! What does T.F Green airport have that Manchester doesn’t have?
T.F Green Airport
• US Customs built right into Gate 8
• International flights (Norwegian, Azores airlines, TACV)
• Better terminal
• More destinations
• New Airlines (Norwegian, Allegiant, Frontier)
Manchester-Boston Regional Airport
• New Consolidated Rental car facility (waste of money)
• No new airlines
• US customs at the Ammon Terminal
• New Family meeting area near the Entrences next to Baggage claim near the Southwest ticket counter
• Emtpy ticket area
• Gate 4 can accommodate aircraft as large as a B763ER, but they have not built US customs there for some reason…

I feel as if the airport managers or directors at the Manchester-Boston are doing NOTHING to get airlines to fly here. People here have been flying out of Boston because they have no other choice, Manchester got expensive. If the airport could somehow work with the community and see what the people would like to see in air travel, I would be delighted to tell them I want air travel to Europe from my home state! Instead, they don’t want to hear the community speak. There has to be some sort of change, if TF Green is gaining International flights to Europe, Manchester can too! I just wish the airport could at least get an airline to fly here, I would love new airline service so i don’t have to go down to Boston and be stuck in traffic for an hour.

KMHT airport Master Plan:
https://www.flymanchester.com/sites/default/files/public-documents/Manchester%20Airport%20Master%20Plan%20Update.pdf
KMHT airport layout plan:
https://www.flymanchester.com/sites/default/files/public-documents/ALP_Full%20Set.pdf

What would you like to see from the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport?

    • More Air Service
    • Better accommodations
    • More restaurants
    • US Customs built at Gate 4
    • Service to Europe
    • A New store
    • Airport expansions

0 voters

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Because its so close to Boston Logan Airport as upstate New York and Rhode Island are about a good 2 hours from a major airport

I have been asking the same question about MacArthur Airport (KISP) for a long time now! Atleast Frontier is now adding a KFLL service (New airline - New Future?)

With Norwegian Airlines expanding dramatically… They have made a statement that they are looking to as many East Coast airports as possible. Aswell as the airport listed in my topic: Norwegian Air Shuttle | Benjamin Franklin to be the First American Tailfin Hero (Texas, Louisiana, etc)

Theirs a slight possibility that your airport may get more airlines to service soon! :)

For now… Just enjoy it how it is! (No Major Traffic Jams To Get To The Airport!)

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I thought the same held true for BDL, a slightly larger station in the same bucket as MHT. Higher fares, less flights, and an international airport nearby. Now, I can head down to BDL and reach DUB, and soon EDI, from the comfort of the terminal I know best. As airlines like Norwegian begin lower-cost services to/from smaller airports, it seems airports like MHT would be next on the list for flights.

My #1 issue I find with providing TATL service up in NH would be the proximity of airports such as BOS, which is about an hour away depending on time. Having spent a few months in Exeter, NH, I’d say that as much as I like Manchester, the proximity of Boston is just too irresistible. The sad fact is that there aren’t many options for TATL flights at an airport without a large FIS and without incentive such as subsidies to bring in service. EI came into BDL with the combination of the market for a flight and a nice subsidy from the state. Now that we’ve lured the airline in, flights are looking good and the flight may be here to stay even when subsidies end.

My $0.02 would be to ask MHT whether they have any money to offer subsidies for a transatlantic service from a smaller airline considering the area MHT draws from is solid, and only needs to lure in a carrier. That aside, it’d require an FIS better and larger than the Ammon Terminal, and would be best done akin to BDL with a new customs facility near the main terminal or customs built-in (BDL’s has full-time custom staffing and a jetway as well!). Norwegian was interested, but they rejected MHT after they found a lack of a “proper” CBP facility.

The main decline at MHT can be attributed to LCCs serving BOS – now that they’re there, fares have dropped and they’ve moved their business away from MHT to serve BOS, which has cut services and inflated airfares. Flights from MHT can be twice, or even triple the amount of a similar flight from BOS, which continues to suck up a majority of the possible market share MHT could support. Even with the added time to reach BOS, it seems non-stops, better timing, and lower fares has taken many customers away.

For the most part, PVD is very different from MHT even if they are the same distance from BOS. PVD is home to companies like CVS, Textron, Hasbro, Amica, Citizens Bank, etc. nearby and closer to PVD compared to BOS. In addition, there’s a much larger catchment area unique to PVD, such as Cape Cod and New London which aren’t overly affected by BOS. MHT seems to share a lot of its catchment area to BOS, and also seems to have few companies that are close to the airport. Larger companies are either too close to Boston or prefer the better timings, reducing the amount of corporate travel and high-yielding markets.

Here in BDL, we see companies like LEGO, MassMutual, GE, Pratt + Whitney, Aetna, Xerox, Stanley Black + Decker, etc., and as a result have a high amount of high-yield traffic that wanted transatlantic travel. BDL is farther from both BOS and JFK, and as a result sees a large and unique catchment area, suitable for TATL flights.

If MHT had more unique high-yield traffic, perhaps more traffic would be in the works even as Southwest consolidates its flight options, especially those in the transatlantic department by a large, fuller-service carrier like EI or B6. Unfortunately, this seems like it might be the end – BOS is just too darn close to allow MHT to provide its own unique catchment area that can support more flights, and facilities and subsidies aren’t enough to attract even the smallest carriers.

Sorry if this seems like a paragraph-tastrophe.

3 Likes
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Remember that there are three other major international airports near Manchester (MHT) that primarily serve the New England area:

Bradley Intl (BDL), Boston-Logan Intl (BOS), and T.F. Green Intl (PVD). There’s also a few minor ones including: Burlington Intl (BTV) and Portland Intl (PWM).

All of these airports have a significant amount of airline traffic, especially Bradley and Boston. I personally think that MHT, being so close to PVD, BDL, and BOS, doesn’t need to have even more airline traffic since these other major airports already provide a sufficient amount for the area.

Remember also that there’s direct transportation to Boston-Logan Intl via Greyhound Bus Lines and further on to T.F. Green Intl via MBTA Commuter Rail which is convenient for some considering these rides are less than 2 hours long.

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Nope frontier is doing ISP-MCO not FLL 😉
But I agree with you, we need more service here!! with ISP’s new marketing plan released we hopefully will get some more. Frontier even mentioned the possibility of flying to and from the Caribbean if they are successful here!

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Whoops… I was thinking of Southwest Airlines proposed 2018 route from KFLL - TNCM (xD)

I was hoping that Norwegian would consider it for a KISP - TNCM route (As most of the time the tourists are all from long Island…) so I contacted them and got their stupid auto message… “We Currently do not serve to that airport.”

I heard that Punta Cana and San Juan was a option for Frontier Airlines from KISP (Hopefully TNCM) :)

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I know Allegiant is adding new routes fromm KPSM.

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Really? To Manchester-Boston?

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No, KPSM is Portsmouth International Airport at Pease. It’s just a few miles east of Manchester International. :)

@Keegan_Gidley: Where’d you hear this? Any sources you can link? I haven’t heard much about Allegiant expanding their operations at PSM.

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Oops I totally forgot that airport existed (PSM)

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Many don’t seem to remember this airport including myself. It’s tucked away in a little corner of New Hampshire.

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Here is what I would do If I was an Airport Manager or Director:

I would like to hear what the Community would want in Air Service. If the community wants Air Travel to Europe, as the director of the Airport, I would reach out to some of the airlines in Europe, and would try to figure out a plan to accommodate the airline that has been chosen into Manchester. If the people wants more flight options, I would have to reach out to several airlines, and talk with them into possibly serving Manchester to a destination that the people of New Hampshire would love to fly to. An Example:
The People of New Hampshire wants flights to the France. The Problem here is that Air France already flies to Boston from Paris, but there is an airline called Open Skies (Owned and operated by British Airways) that is based on Orly Airport in France. The airport would work something out with the airline to see what they would like from the airport. We would then make changes to accommodate them and have them take a tour of the airport if the CEO wishes. If they agree to start flights from Orly to Manchester, then we would announce that we have managed to get a new airline to start flights non-stop to Europe, and all thanks to the community who spoke out on what they wanted and how we managed to fit the airline into the airport and help the airline with whatever they needed to feel welcomed.

That is what I would do. All I want is more air service out of Manchester

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The CEO or Director of the airport is probably attending conferences and airline conventions trying… Airlines have possibly looked at this airport and have made plans to expand here in the future as others will just throw away that idea!

Best of luck to Manchester-Boston! :)

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Yeah, they’re going to Mrytle Beach now.

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I think they’ve always serviced it, but flights to KMYR are seasonal.

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What if Open Skies wants subsidies to make sure they’ll make a profit while they test the waters?

What if they want a new customs facilities for their 757s before they land to make sure MHT can process all their passengers efficiently?

What if they want lounge space, even if no space exists?

What if the CBP refuses to work later hours/more hours and want more pay to make up for it?

What if there is less demand than forecasted, and the route flops? Will you keep it afloat with subsidies?

With all these added costs for TATL services and a lack of funds to support them, what will you do? That’s the risk with wanting air service that badly. Do you think MHT can handle it?

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The airport can build a Customs Facility at Gate 4, since it leads right to the Baggage claim area. As for subsidies and CBP, I don’t know, and as for lounge space, the airport already has a small lounge within the airport, if they were to build a new lounge, they would have to move some restaurants to make way for a newer, more modern lounge, it’s not impossible, but the airport can do it if it needs it.

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Personally I like MHT just the way it is. We are traveling there for July 4 weekend as my family is in southern Maine. I like it because it’s not busy and it’s cheap to get there to/from BWI flying Southwest. Flying into Portland is too expensive. Flying to Boston…no thanks. Too much traffic. TF Green and BDL…too far away. I feel like MHT is the ‘just right’ to borrow the Goldie locks and the three bears analogy…at least for us and our situation…so I guess if I were to pick something on the list to vote for, it’d be more food choices.

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