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Wednesday, November 1, 2006
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Sievek: Mesaba accords a treat for area travelers
Senior Reporter Lakes area air travelers got some good news Tuesday.
Reached at his office on Halloween, Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport Manager Steve Sievek said the news of a tentative agreement between Mesaba Aviation Inc. and its mechanics was a treat.
Mesaba serves the Brainerd area airport with three daily departures - part of five daily takeoffs and landings overall.
With the pilots and flight attendants reaching deals, Sievek said it would have been tough for the mechanics to go alone against the airline's proposed pay cuts.
"No one likes taking that kind of pay cut, but unemployment isn't the answer either," Sievek said. "It's encouraging to see them moving forward."
Sievek said he hopes people recognize that Mesaba is going to continue to provide service for outstate Minnesota, including the airport here.
"It does not appear there will be a disruption in service which is nice to know and I think that is what we were facing before," he said, adding it would have taken another carrier a few months to get up and running.
"Once you turn people on to the highway it's tough to get them back," he said.
Sievek said he believes the airport's traffic justifies another daily flight out in the morning. And he hopes that adjustment can be made once the dust settles from the labor negotiations.
The airport's taxiway and runway construction projects are completed. Mesaba is using the new runway with visual flight rules. The new runway has been ground-checked by the Federal Aviation Administration. The instrument landing system, used with low cloud ceilings and with inclement weather, is expected once the runway has been flight-checked, which is expected in November.
RENEE RICHARDSON can be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.
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