A mixed bag of airline news
Posted on October 2nd, 2008 – 11:57 AMBy Chris Welsch
Sun Country is on shaky ground, which has been a known for a couple of years. Now the ground is even shakier. Losing Sun Country would be a sad day for Twin Cities travelers for a number of reasons. The airline has challenged Northwest on popular routes, keeping fares low. It has also challenged Northwest with its customer service, which has consistently been a bright spot. The only travelers I know who prefer Northwest prefer it for the frequent flier miles, which are less and less valuable. Southwest’s entry in the market is good news, and the possibility for connections to the west (probably Salt Lake to begin with) are strong after the Delta merger is complete. A year from now, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is likely to be a very different place, quite possibly with fewer travelers, if current economic trends hold. Could be more competition as Southwest enters the market, or less, if Sun Country and other airlines on the margins can’t survive. Anyone out there care to speculate on the foggy scenes in the crystal ball?




Kerri Westenberg has globe-trotted for National Geographic and other magazines. Now she zips around the region, on the lookout for travel news you can use.
Elizabeth Larsen lived in Salzburg, Austria, and has traveled throughout Europe and the Americas. She can say "diaper," "bottle" and "crib" in four languages.
Troy Melhus has heli-skied on glaciers, dived alongside Monk seals and raced for 24 hours on a mountain bike. All this, and he rarely spends more than $500 on a trip.