Perhaps you’ve experienced this bit of airline travel frustration flying out of Amarillo.
You book a flight, say, to San Francisco. But to get there you have to fly about 90 minutes east to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, where you board another aircraft and re-fly across land you’ve just watched out your window as you zoomed toward the Metroplex.
That might change significantly.
Amarillo aviation director Sarah Freese is negotiating with American Airlines to add another non-stop flight west to Phoenix — the one way out there in Arizona.
Thus, the notion goes that air passengers might stand a better chance of avoiding the dreaded re-flyover routine.
This is good news for those of us who like fly west once in a while.
Understand this: I don’t fly too much. I do venture back to my hometown of Portland, Ore., on occasion. Sure, I can get there with stops in Denver or Las Vegas, which are served by United and Southwest Airlines, respectively from Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport.
The Phoenix route, though, gives travelers from AMA another option that might help them find a better fare than they otherwise would pay.
Freese received a Transportation Department grant to enable the city to seek the Phoenix connection.
The aviation director noted that flying east “when you want to go west” makes you “want to beat your head against the wall.”
Amen to that.
Let’s hope the city finalizes the Phoenix route soon and makes even better use of its still-shiny new airport terminal.