Burbank : 5th Airline to Begin Service in Burbank

Burbank Airport will adopt its fifth commercial airline next month when Reno Air begins daily service between Burbank and San Francisco, airline and airport officials said Friday.

Reno Air, a year-old airline that has positioned itself as a low-cost carrier serving the West Coast, will begin on Oct. 15 to offer four daily round trips between Burbank and San Francisco, airline officials said.

The announcement of an additional airline comes five months after Burbank Airport’s largest carrier, Southwest, announced expansion plans that increased daily jet traffic by about 10%.

The added flights also come as the city of Los Angeles prepares for a court battle next month on a lawsuit it hopes will force the airport to study potential noise problems associated with the construction of a new, larger terminal to be completed by 2010.

In response to criticism about added aircraft noise, Reno Air spokeswoman Sue Putnam said her airline plans to bring to Burbank only jets that meet the federal “Stage 3” noise criteria, the quietest jets currently available to commercial airlines.