Lots happening on the West Coast these days: new routes, new flight frequencies, and a brand-new terminal in Sacramento. It all adds up to more options and easier access for fliers.
- Congress should take a page from the way they run things in Sacramento. Sacramento International’s new $1.1 billion Central Terminal B is set to open Oct. 6, months ahead of schedule and under budget. The sun-suffused, airy structure replaces a facility that opened way back in 1967, when the Beatles were big and airlines such as Western, PSA, and Hughes Air West reigned along the West Coast. Perhaps the new terminal’s most noticeable feature is that landside (pre-security) and airside (post security) will be linked via people-mover cars.
Occupying Central Terminal B will be Aeromexico, Alaska, American, Frontier, Hawaiian, JetBlue, and discount airline Southwest. Continental, United, Delta, and US Airways will operate out of Terminal A.
- Jan. 10, 2012 is the launch date for Hawaiian Airlines’ new thrice-weekly San Jose flights to Maui. San Jose flights to Maui depart at 8:10am Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, getting to the gate at Kahului at 11:45am. Hawaiian will use a widebody 767-300 on the 2,352-mile route. Alaska Airlines already makes the trip. It uses a smaller Boeing 737.
- Oakland International, already a repository of low-fare lift in the Bay Area, just got more cheap flights to The Land of Lost Wages. Discount airline Spirit has added a third-daily Oakland flight to Las Vegas. The 405-mile trip is one of the cheapest in the country. That’s because the other carrier offering Oakland flights to Las Vegas is discount airline Southwest.
When it comes to airports, what’s your favorite – and least favorite – terminal on the West Coast? Let us know.
Story by Jerry Chandler
(Image: Nick Ares)
