Atlanta’s economic success has always been tied to transportation. Originally founded as a railroad hub, one of the primary reasons for the city’s success has been its aggressive pursuit of new transportation opportunities to keep our region open for business.
However, Delta Air Lines’ recent comments on the development of commercial service at Paulding County’s airport show the company is intent on shutting down new opportunities for growth. Last week’s letter from a Delta senior vice president claimed that bringing more airline competition to metro Atlanta would hurt the region’s economy.
That’s a tough sell in a city that has thrived by developing a healthy, competitive business environment. Promoting an anti-competitive agenda and then claiming it is in the best interests of the region, and not your own company, isn’t going to hold water with people in this town.
Furthermore, this debate over competition is overblown and distracting from the reality of the situation. Nobody is talking about building another Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Paulding County. What we are talking about is bringing limited commercial service, along with other developments related to the aerospace industry, to a small airport. That means two or three flights a week to start, with the possibility of growing to a few flights a day.
Delta’s statement that the Paulding airport will hurt Hartsfield-Jackson is like the New York Yankees saying a new Little League field will hurt Yankee Stadium and, in turn, the economy of New York City. In fact, Louis Miller, Hartsfield-Jackson’s own general manager, said that the Paulding airport, and any future commercial traffic there, will have minimal impact to Hartsfield-Jackson. No doubt Delta wishes he wasn’t on record saying that in this very paper.
Delta is also claiming the airport would have a negative impact on Paulding taxpayers. Would that be the impact of 2,000 to 3,000 new jobs or the additional $350 million a year added to our economy? We already have a $50 million commodity in this airport; why not maximize it with development that will be 90 percent paid for the by the FAA?
I am a Paulding County taxpayer, and the only negative impact I’m concerned about are the legal fees associated with the underhanded stall tactics Delta is throwing in front of this project. When one of the local plaintiffs who filed a recent suit was asked who is paying for the expensive attorneys handling the case, the response was, “I’ve been instructed not to tell.” If Delta is really concerned about our taxpayers, perhaps they should refrain from placing these unnecessary burdens in our path.
The ironic part about Delta proudly proclaiming the benefits of the “world’s busiest airport” is that, to regular folks, that sounds like an airport they want to avoid. Right now, they don’t have that choice. In a region with more than 6 million people, surely there is room for a small airport offering affordable, direct flights for people who don’t like the thought of dealing with the “world’s busiest” anything.
David Austin is chairman of the Paulding County Commission.
