CAPE AIRPORT BOARDINGS DOWN

Fewer people are flying out of the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport on Trans World Express.

Boardings of commuter flights to St. Louis from the airport are down by nearly 400 passengers through the first nine months of this year.

Greg Chenoweth, airport manager, blames this year's downturn on a reduced marketing effort locally by TWE and the public's fear of flying on turbo-prop planes.

Some people won't fly on anything but jets, he said.

Bill Mishk, marketing director for TWE in St. Louis, agreed that public fears have hurt boardings for commuter airlines.

So much so, the Regional Airlines Association has hired a public relations firm to educate the public as to the safety of the commuter planes.

TWE hasn't had a local marketing representative in Cape Girardeau since March, Chenoweth said.

Mishk said the company plans to hire a new marketing representative within a few months.

Through September, there were 4,181 boardings compared to 4,576 during the same period last year.

TWE would have to average 716 boardings a month the rest of the year to reach last year's total of 6,330.

Last year's total was up nearly 29 percent from 1993 when 4,911 passengers flew out of Cape Girardeau.

The number of passengers flying out on TWE accounts for most of the city's boardings.

Last year, Cape Girardeau had just over 8,000 boardings from charter, Procter and Gamble and TWE flights.

Boardings will probably fall short of that number this year, said Chenoweth.

That is a concern to Chenoweth and other city officials who want to get boardings back to the 10,000 level.

At that level, the city would automatically receive nearly $400,000 from the Federal Aviation Administration for capital improvements instead of having to compete for FAA grants.

As recently as 1990, the airport had boardings above 10,000 and was receiving such funding.

In 1987, the airport had nearly 14,000 boardings. At that time, the airport was served by two commuter airlines. But since 1989, TWE has been the lone commuter airline serving the city.

Even with fewer boardings, the city continues to receive FAA money, primarily through competitive grants.

In fiscal 1994, the city received more than $700,000 to improve the airport and operate the control tower.

In fiscal 1995, FAA funds for the airport totaled nearly $372,000.

This fiscal year, about $2 million in federal funds are being spent on taxiway and ramp improvements.

Chenoweth said he has tried to promote the airport, including TWE. But he said he can't do it all by himself.

Mishk said geography makes it more difficult to sell the public on commuter flights to St. Louis. Cape Girardeau is a two-hour car trip from St. Louis.

Mishk said it isn't just a Cape Girardeau problem. "Many of the close-in cities that TWE flies to have had a 5 to 10 percent drop-off in bookings."

TWE serves 32 cities in the Midwest within 500 miles of St. Louis.

Despite the drop in boardings, TWE isn't giving up on Cape Girardeau. "I think Cape is a good market," said Mishk.

TWE has served the Cape Girardeau airport since October 1986. Air Midwest initially operated the commuter service. The service was sold to Trans States Airlines in 1990.

TWE travelers receive discounted fares on connecting flights through TWA.

Mishk said it costs about $60 more to fly out of Cape Girardeau than for travelers to board in St. Louis.