Update.......Little Rock National Airport.

[Architect]

In July of next year, AA will upgrade 4 of its flights to MD-80's from the ERJ/CRJ type of aircraft. There will be 4 mainline and 3 regional.

Well...this was short lived! American Airlines announced yesterday that they will NOT be bringing mainline service back to Little Rock National this Spring after all. According to today's article, it was their intention to do so, but once they finalized their '10 schedule, there were just not enough of the big birds to go around.

This is VERY disappointing...I wonder if it will come up in today's Airport Commission meeting? Hopefully it is still AA intent to return mainline, but if their statement is true about limited aircraft, that's not changing anytime soon at all with the financial state they are all in. I tend to believe they're being truthful about the reasoning behind the change, as passenger traffic data was not an unknown, and in fact, if anything, should begin rebounding (furthermore, the main reason was that AA traffic at LIT was up significantly in a down market). I REALLY hate this. Big birds sort of legitimize a cities service in my opinion.

[arkansas_buff]

LIT has a brand new website! Looks sweet! www.fly-lit.com

[arkansas_buff]

LIT is working to establish non stop service to LAX this year. Airport leaders will be meeting with at least one airline later this month. The full story is on Fox 16's website.

[LRguy21]

LIT is working to establish non stop service to LAX this year. Airport leaders will be meeting with at least one airline later this month. The full story is on Fox 16's website.

About time!!! LIT needs LAX, DC and a florida destination.

[arkansas_buff]

American Eagle will begin offering First Class service on their CRJ-700's to O'Hare and DFW beginning July 2nd. Full story here.

[EJC]

American Eagle will begin offering First Class service on their CRJ-700's to O'Hare and DFW beginning July 2nd. Full story here.

The article makes it sound like First Class is only available on the DFW to LIT flights and not O'hare.

[Architect]

Delta has returned mainline service to it's Atlanta routes (two of nine flights per day). I found this out quite by accident booking a return flight from Florida next week. Nice to see them reinstate mainline on that (heavily trafficed) route, but apparently it was at the expense of the prior Memphis mainline service...which honestly, never made sense on such a short hop.

[Architect]

An additional update (see my post directly above):

The LR Airport Commission voted yesterday to endorse a 10 year, $220M plan to renovate the terminal. Global oil prices and the ensuing recession killed plans for an entirely new, $300M facility two years ago. However, this approach is essentially a complete rebuild in place. The $53M Phase I, which will set the design language, will start next year and will include a new luggage handling system, upgraded ticketing and security areas, etc. Nice to see this "get off the ground"!

[arkansas_buff]

An additional update (see my post directly above):

The LR Airport Commission voted yesterday to endorse a 10 year, $220M plan to renovate the terminal. Global oil prices and the ensuing recession killed plans for an entirely new, $300M facility two years ago. However, this approach is essentially a complete rebuild in place. The $53M Phase I, which will set the design language, will start next year and will include a new luggage handling system, upgraded ticketing and security areas, etc. Nice to see this "get off the ground"!

That's just awesome. Can't wait to see how this develops.

[theman]

An additional update (see my post directly above):

The LR Airport Commission voted yesterday to endorse a 10 year, $220M plan to renovate the terminal. Global oil prices and the ensuing recession killed plans for an entirely new, $300M facility two years ago. However, this approach is essentially a complete rebuild in place. The $53M Phase I, which will set the design language, will start next year and will include a new luggage handling system, upgraded ticketing and security areas, etc. Nice to see this "get off the ground"!

You can go on arkansasbusiness.com and read about the planned updates to the airport.

[LRguy21]

Where is my LAX flight? or NYC?

[Architect]

Where is my LAX flight? or NYC?

There are direct flights to Newark, which is one of three NYC airports.

[LIT uPP]

A front page article in last Saturday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette shows an architectural rendering of the approved terminal design. The ticketing and baggage claim areas will be aligned in a linear fashion, as opposed to the current “L” shaped design. Apparently, the current baggage claim wing will be demolished to make way for the new drop off/pick up lanes that run the length of the elongated terminal. The exterior will have a canopy to protect arriving and departing guests. It appears the concourse will be widened to a standard width, as opposed to the current situation where the gate areas extend out from the central hallway. I suppose the gate areas will extend the entire length of the concourse, perhaps broken occasionally by restaurants, stores, restrooms, etc. The number of gates will be expanded from twelve to eighteen. The rendering even depicts a couple of the gates extending from the west side of the main terminal, instead of from the concourse.

I will try to insert the image from the ADG article.

[Architect]

A front page article in last Saturday’s Arkansas Democrat-Gazette shows an architectural rendering of the approved terminal design. The ticketing and baggage claim areas will be aligned in a linear fashion, as opposed to the current “L” shaped design. Apparently, the current baggage claim wing will be demolished to make way for the new drop off/pick up lanes that run the length of the elongated terminal. The exterior will have a canopy to protect arriving and departing guests. It appears the concourse will be widened to a standard width, as opposed to the current situation where the gate areas extend out from the central hallway. I suppose the gate areas will extend the entire length of the concourse, perhaps broken occasionally by restaurants, stores, restrooms, etc. The number of gates will be expanded from twelve to eighteen. The rendering even depicts a couple of the gates extending from the west side of the main terminal, instead of from the concourse.

I will try to insert the image from the ADG article.

Your assessment is spot on, as I know a lot about the project. The independent gates are "international" departure/arrival gates. The interior spaces in the terminal will be downright majestic...a dramatic, and welcomed change from the original 40 year old terminal.

p.s. I am still baffled as to why they are maintaining ONE concourse rather than splitting it into two to accommodate future growth. I understand it has to do with both future traffic projections (and hence, need for gates), as well as a constricted tarmac between existing infrastructure - i.e. there's not enough "width" though the original terminal design called for a second concourse.

[LIT uPP]

Your assessment is spot on, as I know a lot about the project. ...The interior spaces in the terminal will be downright majestic...a dramatic, and welcomed change from the original 40 year old terminal.

If you have any renderings of your own that you could share, I’m sure we would all like to see those – especially of the interior.

[LRguy21]

Looks like UA & CO are going to merge now. I view this as a positive to LIT. Maybe now we can get a LAX light. UA will now serve Houston, Chicago, New York & Denver. BRING ON LAX!!!

[arkansas_buff]

The airport website has an excellent pdf overview of the complete terminal renovation project. You'll find it here. There are some very intriguing images of what will essentially be a completely new terminal.

[jnholmes]

I was booking flights from LIT for early fall and Delta has mainline service to/from ATL using an MD-88! Super excited! We now have a couple of flights to MEM and ATL using mainline aircraft. All we need now is a DTW mainline. (Wishful thinking)

[Architect]

I was booking flights from LIT for early fall and Delta has mainline service to/from ATL using an MD-88! Super excited! We now have a couple of flights to MEM and ATL using mainline aircraft. All we need now is a DTW mainline. (Wishful thinking)

Yep, I found that out quite by accident on a return flight from Florida through Atlanta about a month ago - so I booked it! I typically keep up with that type of stuff, and I didn't see any news about it being added back...normally the airport makes a press release about that kind of thing.

[LRguy21]

Starting in September, Delta will drop its last remaining flight between CVG and LIT. It will add a flight to DTW in its replace. Its good to see mainline return to ATL, but I think that we will eventually see the mainline drooped from MEM. Here's hoping that the DTW flight will be up graded to mainline.

[jnholmes]

Starting in September, Delta will drop its last remaining flight between CVG and LIT. It will add a flight to DTW in its replace. Its good to see mainline return to ATL, but I think that we will eventually see the mainline drooped from MEM. Here's hoping that the DTW flight will be up graded to mainline.

I agree about the MEM flights but the demand is there so maybe it will stay. I just flew on the DTW-LIT it was packed so hopefully we will get one of those flights upgraded to mainline.

[LRguy21]

Talk around LIT is that AA will add back Mainline sometime this fall or next spring. Also heard someone say that DL will upgrade a DTW flight if it all goes according to their plan.

Would still like to see a LAX and Florida link sometime in the near future.

[Architect]

Talk around LIT is that AA will add back Mainline sometime this fall or next spring. Also heard someone say that DL will upgrade a DTW flight if it all goes according to their plan.

Would still like to see a LAX and Florida link sometime in the near future.

Wow! That would be great, and certainly given the fact that AA had publicly announced the return of mainline this last Spring (and then backed off due to equipment shortages) lends credence to that happening...would love to see DTW upgraded on DL as well!

p.s. Where are you hearing this?

[arkansas_buff]

Ron Mathieu talked to Fox 16 about all that's on tap for the airport.

[theman]

An article in today's Democrat Gazette on the airport charging a $3.50 fee for each car that is rented from the airport also mentioned that the contruction on the new baggage system, upgrade to the ticket counters and security area would start in Novemember and cost $53 million. The article also said that the rest of the terminal renovation wouldn't start until 2020 when the airport could afford the bonds to pay for the project.