Sacramento Airport Is Aggressively Pursuing European Airline
Sacramento International Airport officials want to land at least one major European airline flying directly from that continent to Sacramento, and are in discussion with a number of carriers — and may soon be making offers.
Namely, for a deal to fly nonstop to a major European airport, the selected airline (or two) would be able to fly free out of California’s capital for as long as two years, the Sacramento Bee reports.
That is the mainstay of a new incentive package recently approved by Sacramento County. The incentives target low-cost European carriers, a burgeoning part of the airline industry across the Atlantic.
A number of such airlines have expanded their service to smaller U.S. airports, such as Oakland, with direct flights to Europe. Such connections are considered important in fostering international trade.
Among the carriers that the Sacramento airport has been in discussions with are Norwegian Air Shuttle, which flies out of Oakland; Condor Airlines of Germany; and Wow Air, a low-cost Icelandic airline that has flights from San Francisco, Portland, Austin and Anchorage.
The incentive package would waive airline landing and facility fees for up to 24 months, though periods of 12 or 18 months are also possible depending on the type of service.
The airport would also pony up as much as $400K for marketing and advertising expenses for the new flights.
