keady - note that they are boasting of a higher minimum revenue guarantee. The shame is these guarantees often result in ok loads - until the guarantee runs out. I'm looking for examples where an airline paid for added service, which then was able to fly on its own. Cities airports need to realize airlines are pretty adept at forecasting future traffic, using government data, commerce figures, local statistics, etc. However, I know of ;prestige consulting firm that can make your airport shine
Topeka airport officials pitching airline on passenger air service Jason AlatiddTopeka Capital-JournalFeb. 4, 2026, 4:01 a.m. CTKeep Watching5 - Topeka airport officials are actively recruiting an airline to reestablish commercial passenger service. - A previous deal with an unnamed airline fell through after that airline chose to fill vacant slots at Hollywood Burbank Airport. - The Burbank slots became available after Avelo Airlines ceased operations there following a boycott. - Airport leaders are now in talks with a different airline for potential daily service to a major hub. Topeka airport officials are pitching an airline this week on reestablishing passenger flights out of Forbes Field after efforts to get commercial air service in the capital city were derailed by the ripple effect of a political boycott of a different airline. Metropolitan Topeka Airport Authority leaders explained the situation to state lawmakers representing Shawnee County during a Feb. 2 meeting at the Kansas Statehouse. "We are still in the process of recruiting commercial air service," said Curtis Sneden, the MTAA development director. "That is a long, fairly tortured process. If you needed a way to learn how to be patient with the world, this would a good project to start." "We're still in touch with the airlines to try to persuade them Topeka is a place where they could really thrive," he added. Topeka had a signed letter of intent with an airline Eric Johnson, the MTAA president and director of airports, told lawmakers, "There was a lot of talk about we had an opportunity with an airline coming soon" to Topeka Regional Airport. Johnson said Topeka airport officials met with several airlines during a conference in early 2025. Discussion followed with a specific airline, which had a site visit in Topeka where they looked at the terminal building and screening checkpoint. He didn't name the airline. Had the plan gone forward, there would have been four total destinations, starting first with service to Orlando. "We had a letter of intent from that airline in April of 2025, which that got the ball rolling for the TSA," Johnson said. "With that letter of intent," he said, "the TSA told us go ahead and start developing, so we started developing a full security program for approval which would be appropriate for that level of service with the airline. We negotiated a minimum revenue guarantee with the airline. We got to the point that everyone's happy with it, we signed it and sent it off to the TSA, and that's where we just fell out of the running." More: Topeka airport leader shares vision for service to Las Vegas, Phoenix and Orlando How an anti-ICE boycott disrupted Topeka's effort to recruit airline "What happened was there was an airline that was providing service in Burbank, California — and there's a lot of other little things going on, but this was the big one," Johnson said. "This airline was providing these flights to Burbank, California, and because of some other choices they made within the airline, they were basically being boycotted. Nobody was flying, not enough anyway." Get the Afternoon Headlines newsletter in your inbox. Get the latest headlines you may have missed Delivery: WeekdaysYour Email While Johnson didn't name that airline, Reuters reported in July that Texas-based budget carrier Avelo Airlines closed its base at Hollywood Burbank Airport. The move came amid financial struggles and a boycott over the airline's operation of deportation flights for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "So they decided to vacate the slots that they had in Burbank," Johnson said, "and the airline that we had a letter of intent and had negotiated a minimum revenue guarantee with decided they were going to fill those slots. It was a proven market, and they packed up and took it. "That knocked us out of the running for an October to March '26 startup, but also took out six other airports along with us. I know that doesn't make anybody feel any better, but it wasn't just Topeka that got hit with that. Three of those other markets had already announced their new service and then had to retract it, which I'm glad we weren't at that point." At least three airlines — Breeze Airways, Alaska Airlines and Allegiant — announced they were adding routes or expanding with new service to Burbank after Avelo abandoned Hollywood Burbank Airport. "We're basically starting over," Johnson said. "We still have the letter intent. They still like Topeka, but they don't have enough airplanes to fill that while they're doing their thing in Burbank, California. "Which is very unfortunate because it would have been a game changer for us. That would have filled our parking lot completely and given us revenues that we haven't seen in a very long time with airlines. So, extremely disappointing. There's very little we can do about it." More: Topeka airport closer to building hangar and attracting skilled jobs Topeka is in talks with another airline Johnson said the MTAA has "continued our conversations with other airlines" and has a meeting with one this week. "This particular meeting, we were invited to a headquarters meeting with an airline for a daily service," Johnson said. "So we're going to go out on Wednesday and we're going to sell Topeka the best we can to try and make something happen with this. "They're familiar with us already. We're just hoping that with what we're offering — because we have a larger minimum revenue guarantee to offer this time than we did the last time we spoke to them — maybe that's the change that they need." If it pans out, it would be daily service with connection to a major hub, Johnson said, which would "actually provide a greater impact to the airport and the community." Johnson said the situation and the lack of air service in Topeka "frustrates the daylights out of me." "We're one of the last remaining capital cities in the country that doesn't have air service," he said. Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.
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