"For years, Arnold Palmer Regional Airport had depended on Spirit to run all of its flights out of Latrobe, a small town about an hour east of Pittsburgh. But now the airline was in deep financial trouble. Still, Haas was hopeful when he took over as executive a week ago. The airport had just launched a nonstop service to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and soon, it would open a new $22 million terminal, a feat that would double the number of passengers it could serve."
"Then, on Saturday, three days after Haas took over, one of his workers texted at 3 a.m. that Spirit had begun " an orderly wind-down " of its business. Every flight was canceled. Arnold Palmer Regional Airport was, for commercial passengers, all of a sudden defunct. Across the nation, Spirit customers scrambled to rebook their flights on United and JetBlue, but as Haas drove to Arnold Palmer several hours before dawn, he knew that his town, and his employees, would have no other options."
"The airport still had private planes and chartered flights, but Spirit was its only commercial carrier. Other airports lost just a percentage of their flights. Arnold Palmer was the only one in the entire country to lose 100 percent of its commercial traffic. Without Spirit, Haas knew the first thing he would have to do as the new boss was lay off the co-workers he had known for most of his life."
""That's very tough because everyone here puts their heart and soul into this place," Haas said. "They're very dedicated to this airport and want to see it grow." Latrobe is a rural speck nestled in the Laurel Highlands, but it has had an airport for at least a century. The Longview Flying Field opened in 1924, and by 1939, the airport was so well regarded, Congress chose it as the site for the country's first airmail pickup."
Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Latrobe relied on Spirit Airlines as its only commercial carrier. After Spirit announced a promotion for Moe Haas, the airport faced a major disruption when Spirit began an orderly wind-down and canceled every flight. Haas had recently started a nonstop route to Myrtle Beach and prepared to open a new $22 million terminal intended to double passenger capacity. With Spirit gone, the airport became defunct for commercial passengers, leaving only private planes and charter service. Other airports lost only some flights, but this airport lost 100 percent of its commercial traffic. Haas anticipated layoffs because the airline’s collapse removed the airport’s primary revenue source and staffing needs.
Read at The Washington Post
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