Reno Air Is Closer to Challenging Southwest

A week after Southwest Airlines ushered in a new era of lower fares at John Wayne Airport, another low-cost, no-frills carrier is poised on the runway.

Reno Air, an upstart Nevada-based airline that has grown quickly since 1992, wants to operate an unspecified number of American Airline’s flight slots from the Orange County airport.

Although Reno Air has been denied access to the airport in the past because not enough landing slots were available, the joint operation plan with American has won the blessings of Airport Director Jan Mittermeier.

“The county does wish to encourage broad-based competitive air service,” Mittermeier wrote in a letter to the airline’s lawyers.

Mittermeier, who is asking the Airport Commission to approve the cooperative operating deal at its meeting tonight, said she approves only with a hefty set of restrictions, such as limiting Reno Air to six daily round-trip flights. She also wants to try out the joint operation through September.

The joint arrangement could benefit both airlines. Reno Air would feed passengers into American’s profitable long-range flights. In return, Reno Air would benefit from its existing program of crediting its passengers through American Airlines’ frequent-flier program.

Reno Air has not outlined how many flights or what destinations it has in mind. The airline flies to various cities in the West, including Los Angeles International Airport. A Reno Air spokesman offered no substantive comment on the airline’s plans, and American Airlines officials could not be reached for comment.

But commission documents indicate that Reno Air plans to fly some or all of American’s flights from Orange County to San Jose. Reno Air, with its low-cost structure and one-way fares of $72 to San Jose, would have a better chance of competing against Southwest.

Southwest started flying eight round trips daily to San Jose and seven daily to Oakland with an everyday fare of $69 each way. American was charging up to $140 one way on the San Jose flights. It has since matched Southwest’s fare.