Crushed Dreams

So today Patrick and I were talking about Lufthansa buying a portion of JetBlue, and I was talking about how much JetBlue has grown since I did my senior project with them in 2004. I haven't followed them much in the past year, and was pleased to hear that they'd expanded to ORD (that was a big goal of theirs). I said once they really got going in places like Denver and Chicago, that would really help them out. Then I mused about why there was no airport in the middle of America. Our conversation is below, comments are welcome!


Kelly: Somebody should build a big freaking air hub in Omaha.
It'd be genius.
In the middle of everything.
Patrick: haha
do it
Kelly: Yeah right.
Patrick: or memphis
Kelly: That takes CAPITAL.
No not memphis.
It's too far east.
Patrick: NWA has a hub in memphis
Kelly: Fed Ex's hub is there.
UPS's air hub is in Louisville.
But seriously. I say Omaha.
It would be so freaking great.
Patrick: someones got to be hub in kansas city?
Kelly: It doesn't need to be a big city even.
The point is that it's the middle and moves people around more quickly.
No one needs to stay there.
Just go from there to other places.
Man people should do that.
No one is Kansas City that I know of.
Patrick: i need to research now
denver sucks as a hub i think
snow
Kansas City International Airport currently serves as a airline hub for Midwest Airlines.
Kelly: Denver is alright.
LOL Midwest airlines.
Does that airline even EXIST?
Patrick: they have cookies
and fly to milwaukee not chicago
they are supposed to be good
Kelly: lol
Patrick: there are no flights from omaha to the northwest
you should get on that
Kelly: LOL
Patrick: i chop omaha
wichita kansas
that is exactly the middle
Kelly: Is it?
I would even go to some little place.
Like Ahsgdohipgasdjn, Kansas.
Because land would be cheap and it DOESN'T MATTER WHERE IT IS.
Patrick: ha
Kelly: Think of what the people of Ahaklshgdklhg would think of me!
They would LOVE me.
Patrick: but then theyd need hotels and stuff
Kelly: I would bring tons of money.
Right.
Patrick: jobs
Kelly: There would be hotels.
Jobs would come.
They would be happy.
Public transportation. Restaurants. Rental cars.
Patrick: and people would learn to pronounce their towns tricky name
Kelly: LOL.
Patrick: their code could be HAK
Kelly: LOL why HAK?
Why not AHK?
Or ACK
I like ACK
Patrick: ha
Kelly: Should I be the geographical center of the 48 states or the 50?
Ahh forget those other 2. That's too hard.
It doesn't maximize goodness.
Patrick: ACK is nantucket
Kelly: I'll be in Lebanon Kanasas.
The geographical center of the lower 48 states lies outside of Lebanon, Kansas, in the middle of a hog farm.
Patrick: ha
Kelly: Move over hogs, my airport is coming in!!!!
Patrick: hahah
Kelly: This is genius.
I am a freaking genius
Why hasn't any other fool thought of this?
Maybe because they can't find enough people to work at the hotels and restaurnts and as ramp agents and all of that other stuff that an airport requires.
Patrick: yes
or people tend to put big airports in big cities
Kelly: Do you think that's an issue?
I realize they want the airports in cities to get people there.
But this would PURELY be a hub.
Except for the 8 people that live in Lebanon.
Patrick: i think as a UPS hub or something it would be excellent
Kelly: They would be thankful I'm sure.
No. People hub. I don't know what the problem with that is?
Just the people to work there?
Patrick: but most of the country lives in the east and flies between east coast cities
Kelly: They are already well covered.
What about the fools on the west coast?
Patrick: fools
Kelly: That want to visit their family on the east coast.
they NEED to fly through lebanon.
one might say "why not take a nonstop flight"
That is inefficient.
It is much better to take everyone from LA, SF, Seattle, PHX, PDX, and ship them all to Lebanon. Then send them to NY, Jersey, Boston, Virginia, etc.
MUCH more efficient.
Patrick: yes
do it
Kelly: Well you seem to be squelching it.
Patrick: Because of its central location and surrounding farmlands, Lebanon is a crossroads to the nation during hunting seasons with hunters traveling hundreds of miles to hunt Pheasant, Quail, Doves, Ducks and Deer.
i need to go to lebanon ks
if only there was an airport there
i want to see the monument to the center of the country
It was in October of 1887 that the residents of Old Lebanon picked up their very town, down to the foundations, and moved it two and one half miles northeast. The people of Old Lebanon moved because the Rock Island Railroad, threading its way across Kansas toward the west, missed old Lebanon.
the people of lebanon NEED transportation in their town
Kelly: NO KIDDING
And who cares about those people.
I just need them to work for me.
Patrick: all 303 of them
Kelly: Right.
EVERY ONE OF THEM.
From the age of 12 to the age of 80
Should be airport employees.
And their cousins in nearby Alkhsgdkl.
Patrick: youll need to import folks
Kelly: Yes.
Patrick: hahah yes
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/02/us/02album.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin
i remember reading this article
Kelly: Interesting article.
Patrick: i think folks like him will resist the airport
Kelly: LOL.
Perhaps.
Patrick: yes
perhaps you should research the mid-america airport on the wiki
Kelly: why??
is it someone else's idea?
Scott Air Force Base?
Patrick: im disappointed with the wikiarticle
Kelly: Uh oh.
I don't want to be the Gateway to Nowhere
Patrick: haha
Kelly: Sad.
I guess starting an airport in Lebanon would be harder than I thought
(1) farmer resistance
(2) lack of workers
(3) previous failures.
actually who am I kidding? I never thought starting an airport would be EASY.
Too bad the whole world isn't made of IEs
Then we wouldn't have such resitance
Patrick: haha
"My opinion is it's never going to be much of a passenger airport but it's got potential for cargo. I think that's where the main thrust I would like to see is it go for cargo," Tiedeman said.Others agreed."There is international corn coming in and those planes need to go through international cargo. All planes need to fly with international flights and the Midwest products are in high demand," District 16 County Board member June Chartrand said.
Kelly: LAME.
Patrick: http://suburbanjournals.stltoday.com/articles/2007/12/06/news/sj2tn20071205-1205fhj_10yearsofmaa.ii1.txt
Kelly: I don't want to be a cargo airline.
Patrick: corn airport
Kelly: I want to be a passenger airport
I don't WANT to be a corn airport either!!!!
DANG.
Nevermind.
I quit!
Patrick: im sorry for squashing your dreams
i think this is good blog fodder for you
Kelly: LOL.
Maybe.
Oh I have 10 minutes.
I can write about it.
Patrick: you can just cut and past our analysis and invite comments

And there you have it folks. Hopefully this provides some amusement if nothing else. :)