Airline Proposes Direct Oxnard-Phoenix Flights

Long-distance commuters will be able to catch a direct flight from Oxnard to Phoenix this fall if a proposal by America West Airlines wins approval, county airport officials said Tuesday.

The proposed service would be the first regularly scheduled flights from Ventura County to a destination outside the state in the past decade. The twin-propeller planes would carry up to 37 passengers twice a day to and from Phoenix’s Sky Harbor Airport.

A reservation agent for the airline said it would cost $106 round-trip from Oxnard. This compares with round-trip fares from Santa Barbara to Phoenix of $223, or $99 from Burbank to Phoenix.

Currently, United Express, which is affiliated with United Airlines, is the only commercial airline operating in Ventura County. It provides shuttle service to and from Los Angeles International Airport six times daily.

In the 1980s, airlines offered service from Oxnard to San Francisco and Sacramento. Those routes were discontinued when the airlines deregulated or service was changed. Regular flights to Las Vegas were halted after a few months of operation in 1990.

The Ventura County Board of Supervisors needs to vote on the America West proposal, probably in June, to permit the service to start Sept. 6 as planned, said Rod Murphy, the county’s director of airports.

Murphy said no other airlines have proposed direct service to other cities, but if flights to Phoenix are a success, more airlines might take notice.

“We believe the market is there and it is needed, but we have to go through the process,” he said.

The flights would be aboard a de Havilland Dash 8 aircraft, a turboprop airplane that looks very much like the current United Express aircraft.

Supervisor Frank Schillo applauded the proposal, saying it might help bring more businesses to the county.

“A lot of companies locate here and want their sales staff to be able to fly out of the county,” he said. “This is a start, and it lets them know that we are trying.”

Not everyone was as enthusiastic about the proposal.

Steve Buratti, who owns a home east of the airport, said he would do everything he could to stop the plan.

“This is exactly what we have been fighting against all along,” he said. “The airport is not compatible with the surrounding area now. The last thing we want is to bring in more commercial carriers.”

The America West flights would leave Oxnard at 6:40 a.m. and 2:59 p.m., arriving at 8:18 a.m. and 4:37 p.m., respectively. Flights would depart from Phoenix at 10:54 a.m. and 7:15 p.m., arriving in Oxnard at 12:36 and 8:57 p.m.