Continental Airlines service between Green Bay and Cleveland started Monday morning shortly after Continental and United Airlines announced a merger they hope to have completed by the end of the year.
The daily nonstop service from Austin Straubel International Airport in Ashwaubenon began with a departing flight of 26 people Monday morning. It resumes a route Continental established in 2008 but pulled, citing the cost of fuel at that time.
"We're excited to have any new service coming in and out of out hubs; it shows growth and confidence in the marketplace," said Evan Koppel, regional sales director in the Midwest for Continental. "Green Bay did fairly well when we started it two years ago … it was some business travel mixed in with some leisure, so it had the chance of being a profitable route."
The merger just means business as usual for Continental, Koppel said.
"Right now there are a lot of unknowns of what the merger will bring down the road … but the merger is exciting," he said. "As far as the Green Bay service, they've committed to serving the communities we're already serving."
United Airlines has agreed to buy Continental in a $3 billion-plus deal announced Monday that would create the world's largest carrier.
The new United would surpass Delta Air Lines in size, which should help it attract more high-fare business travelers. It will fly to 370 destinations in 59 countries.
The companies insisted the deal is a merger of equals.
But United shareholders will hold a majority stake, the airline will be based in United's hometown of Chicago and it will be called United.
It will be run by Continental CEO Jeffery Smisek, however. United CEO Glenn Tilton, a longtime advocate of consolidation in the airline industry, will be non-executive chairman for up to two years before Smisek adds the chairman title.
The new parent company will be called United Continental Holdings Inc. and have about $29 billion in annual revenue based on 2009 results and $7.4 billion in unrestricted cash. The airlines said combining would save them $1 billion to $1.2 billion a year by 2013, including between $800 million and $900 million in new yearly revenue.United is the third-largest U.S. carrier by traffic, while Continental Airlines Inc., in Houston, is No. 4.
Antitrust regulators are likely to scrutinize the deal for its effect on fares, but Smisek and Tilton said even a larger United won't have power to boost prices, because other carriers might undercut them.
"There is no carrier in the world that can set air fares," Smisek said. "We couldn't set air fares before this. We can't set air fares after this."
The companies expect to close the deal in the fourth quarter, with approval needed from shareholders and regulators.
Austin Straubel International Airport Director Tom Miller said change is one of the few constants in the airline and airport industry.
"There have been any number of airlines mergers over the last 20 or 30 years, ever since deregulation in 1978, and I think that's something we'll continue to see as we move forward," he said. "I'm excited the Continental CEO will remain as the head of the new merged airline, so I think that will bode well for Green Bay."
This is the second round of new service at the airport in recent weeks, following the start of flights to Denver from Frontier Airlines late last month.
The Green Bay Area Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Green Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau played a role in securing the service.
Miller said he continues to look for additional service for the airport.
"We had a dry spell here for the last couple of years, but a lot of that was driven by the economy, and as the economy is starting to recover, the service is starting to return," he said.
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