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You might be able to fly out of this Bay Area airport soon

Lakeland Linder Regional Airport is trying to bring in a major commercial airline.
Credit: WTSP

LAKELAND, Fla. (WTSP) -- Tampa Bay travelers could soon have a new option when they’re booking their flights. Lakeland Linder Regional Airport’s director, Gene Conrad, said he is working to bring a major commercial airline to it.

Conrad ideally wants Delta, JetBlue or American Airlines to operate out of the airport. He is trying to persuade one of them to fly to their hubs, which are Atlanta, New York, and Charlotte, respectively.

The airport already has a baggage claim area and terminal, but neither has been used in years. In 2012, the small airline Direct Air went bankrupt and ceased operations out of Lakeland’s airport.

“That’s not what we’re going after,” Conrad said, referring to the airlines they’re courting this time around. “They’re not on a shoestring budget, either. They’re billion dollar companies that are flying people all over the world.”

Conrad is asking the mayor, city commission and local businesses, including Publix, to help push for the plan. The airport would guarantee the airline it would make a certain margin on its flights at Lakeland Linder for one year. If it didn’t, the airport would pay the remainder, Conrad said.

Public opinion seems to be in favor of commercial flights out of Lakeland. A Facebook post on the city’s page garnered hundreds of shares and more than a thousand likes.

Even people who live near the airport, who would have to deal with more noise from larger planes, said they would support bringing in a commercial airline.

“The benefits of it being so close would outweigh all of the issues of maybe extra traffic or noise,” Tessa Davis said.

The process of bringing a major commercial airline to Lakeland could take years, but Conrad said he hopes he’s able to do it within the next year to year and a half.

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