Tuesday, March 18, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Nevada-based Reno Air will enter the crowded Las Vegas-Los Angeles market as part of an expansion that will add 12 round-trip flights through McCarran International Airport in May.
While the Nevada carrier doesn't expect to put a big dent in that market, it is positioning itself to offer seamless travel service to a trans-Pacific carrier in the future, company officials said.
The expansion coincides with Reno Air's plans to open a 27,000-square-foot reservation center in offices south of the airport in May.
"The substantial increase in flights at Las Vegas McCarran International Airport demonstrates our commitment to expanding operations in our home state of Nevada," said Robert Reding, Reno Air president and CEO.
Reding said the company already has begun hiring and training 200 customer service agents for the Las Vegas center, which can be expanded to more than double telephone reservation capacity. The company currently uses a subcontractor for some of its reservations.
Steve Sarner, vice president of marketing for the airline, said job fairs are being conducted throughout March to attract part-time and full-time employees.
The reservation center will be housed in the McCarran Center business park on Warm Springs Road at Interstate 215. The Thomas & Mack Co. is building the center and said it could accommodate as many as 300 agents at one time.
Reno Air will have formidable competition in the Los Angeles market when a new schedule takes effect May 22. The carrier that flies the most passengers to and from Las Vegas -- Dallas-based Southwest -- is locked in a battle for West Coast supremacy with Shuttle by United, the high-frequency spinoff of Chicago-based United Airlines.
Between the two of them and other carriers in the market, consumers have six airlines from which to choose and about 54 non-stop flights to Los Angeles International Airport.
But Reno hopes it will attract customers because it offers frequent-flier mileage on its flights for members of American Airlines' program, AAdvantage. It also plans to announce later this year a strategic agreement with a carrier that flies into Los Angeles from the Pacific Rim and wants to use Reno Air as an extension of service to Las Vegas.
"There's already tons of service (between Las Vegas and Los Angeles) currently, but there's also a lot of demand," said Reding. "This way, AAdvantage members are not held hostage by one of our competitors' frequent-flier programs."
Without naming specific companies, Reding said Reno is in negotiations with a trans-Pacific carrier for a code-sharing agreement. Such an agreement would be advantageous to carriers currently serving Los Angeles that want to offer Las Vegas as a destination.
"We could even keep them in first-class seating," Reding said of the proposed agreement, which he said he hopes to announce by the end of the year.
In addition to Los Angeles flights, Reno Air will initiate direct service to San Diego and Albuquerque, N.M., from Las Vegas in May. Reno Air will challenge Southwest and America West in those markets.
Reno Air plans three daily round-trips to each destination. In addition, it is adding daily non-stop flights to three existing Las Vegas markets -- a sixth flight to Reno and a third each to Tucson, Ariz., and Colorado Springs, Colo.
Flight arrivals and departures are timed so that Los Angeles, San Diego and Albuquerque travelers could make connections in Las Vegas for other destinations. Reding credited McCarran officials for helping establish the schedule and gate arrangements to turn Las Vegas into a "mini-hub" for Reno Air.
The May changes are part of a seasonal transition for the airline. In addition to the Las Vegas additions, the company is starting service between Reno and Ontario, Calif. And, for the summer, the company is adding flights between Reno and San Jose, Calif., and Detroit, as well as flights between Tucson and Los Angeles and between Seattle and Anchorage, Alaska.
To free up planes for the moves, the company will suspend flights to Laughlin and Palm Springs, Calif.
Unlike its discount competitors, Reno Air offers first-class seating on its fleet of 29 twin-engine MD-80 and MD-90 jet aircraft.
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