Airport considers 'travel trust' to add flight

One more daily round-trip flight out of Cape Girardeau Regional Airport to St. Louis may not sound like a big deal, but it is.

Economic-development recruiters will tell you transportation is one of the first things businesses look at when deciding to locate or relocate to a community. Business people who are already here will also tell you that getting to St. Louis and back -- often in one day -- is sometimes crucial.

That's why the city's proposal to add another flight is a good one. A practical aspect is that adding a flight would require a deal with area businesses to commit $100,000 in corporate travel dollars.

The money is needed to secure a half-million-dollar federal grant to help pay for the added flight for a year beginning this summer.

Businesses that already use the airport a lot should strongly consider going along with the "ticket trust" financing proposal. It's money the businesses would spend anyway. And, considering that business people would be the primary beneficiaries from an added flight, they probably will get involved.