Travel

Continental Expects New Q400s to Reduce Newark Flight Delays

posted: 01 February 2008 04:32 pm ET

: Continental Airlines expects the 15 new, fast, 74-seat Bombardier Q400 turboprops operating on its Continental Connection network from Newark to help reduce delays to its flights from the airport. In addition, the Q400 is some 30 percent more fuel-efficient than comparably sized jets on flights of 300 miles or more, according to the airline. Credit: Bombardier Aerospace
: Continental Airlines expects the 15 new, fast, 74-seat Bombardier Q400 turboprops operating on its Continental Connection network from Newark to help reduce delays to its flights from the airport. In addition, the Q400 is some 30 percent more fuel-efficient than comparably sized jets on flights of 300 miles or more, according to the airline. Credit: Bombardier Aerospace

Continental Airlines expects its new fleet of Bombardier Q400 regional airliners to produce a welter of operational benefits at its Newark Liberty hub -- including reducing delays to the airline's flights from the airport, one of the most congested in the United States.

Bigger, more fuel efficient and just as quiet and fast as the 35-to-50-seat regional jets they will supplement and replace, Continental's 74-seat Q400 turboprops -- to be owned and operated by Continental Connection franchise partner Colgan Airways -- will operate from Continental's Newark and Cleveland hubs to 18 domestic destinations and two in Canada from Feb. 4.

"The Q400's real benefit is obvious in Newark, with its runway and air traffic control challenges," said David Kinzelman, Continental's managing director for corporate development/alliance operations. "It's a perfect aircraft to be able to do a couple of things. With congestion, it allows us to grow by adding capacity in the market, because it has 24 more seats" than the aircraft it is augmenting -- and in come cases replacing.

"With all the legislation going through Congress about congestion in New York, it's important to us to be as efficient as possible," said Kinzelman.

"A very important point is that this aircraft will allow us to make better use of the runways and air traffic control at Newark," he added. "It can run off the 11/29 runway without an issue. We typically don't use this runway with regularity."

Newark's Runway 11/29 is shorter than the airport's two main, parallel runways and crosses them at a 90-degree angle. Making greater use of Runway 11/29 should allow Continental to operate more efficiently -- and with fewer ground delays -- at what is one of the most delay-plagued airports in the U.S.

Another benefit is that, while the Q400 cruises at 440 mph and -- measuring flight time from gate to gate -- is competitive with a jet over sectors of up to 600 miles, it typically cruises at altitudes of 23,000 feet or 24,000 feet, said Kinzelman. These flight levels are 10,000 to 15,000 feet lower than the altitudes at which jets normally cruise.

This will allow Continental to use lower cruise altitudes for regional flights from Newark, providing air traffic control flexibility and reducing the chances of delays because of traffic congestion in high-level airways, without adding to scheduled flight times, said Kinzelman. "The aircraft really gets up there," he added.

On a 300-mile route stage, the Q400 is only about 5 minutes slower than a jet from gate to gate, said Barry McKinnon, Bombardier's regional vice president for markets and airline analysis. The Q400's very slightly slower cruise speed doesn’t become a factor until flight distance reaches 600 to 700 miles, over which distances the Q400 is about 20 minutes slower than a jet, said McKinnon.

Despite offering 24 more seats than the 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 and twice as many as the 37-seat ERJ-135, the regional jets used in Continental Express service, the Q400 offers an inch more economy-class leg room than both – as well most other aircraft in Continental's fleet. Its 74-seat, single-class cabin offers 32-inch seat pitch and -- when standing in the passenger aisle -- a full 6 feet 5 inches of stand-up height.

The Q400 employs Bombardier's proprietary noise- and vibration-suppression technology in the sides of the passenger cabin. This makes its cabin noise levels no louder than those of a similarly sized jet airliner, said Kinzelman. "The 'Q' stands for 'Quiet'," he noted.

"The customers, I think, are going to love this plane," he said. "And to the extent that the Q400 will help with the congestion challenges, they will love it even more."

Meanwhile, the Q400 is greatly more fuel-efficient than similarly sized jets. "With oil at $100 a barrel, we always look for the most efficient aircraft," said Kinzelman. "The Q400 burns about 30 percent less fuel than a comparably sized jet aircraft" on flights of 300 miles, he noted.

The size of the fuel-burn advantage varies slightly -- but is still of similar magnitude -- over longer flight distances, said McKinnon.

Bombardier regards the aircraft as being optimized for flight distances up to 600 miles, after which point jets come into their own because of their slightly superior speeds. However, in the western U.S. Horizon Air operates its large fleet of Q400s on flights as long as 700 miles, and European operators such as the UK's Flybe also operate Q400s on similar stage lengths, said McKinnon.

Colgan Airways has received the first two of 15 Q400s it has ordered for Continental Connection operations from Newark, and the airline has optioned another 15 from Bombardier to expand its fleet if the Newark operations grow as planned.

Continental Connection Q400 services start on Feb. 4 with flights to Albany and Rochester, N.Y., Baltimore, Md. and Pittsburgh, Pa., with flights to Raleigh/Durham, N.C., and Norfolk, Va. beginning on Feb. 14 when Colgan receives two more Q400s, said Kinzelman. Colgan Air will take delivery of all 15 firmly ordered Q400s before the end of June, by which time the fleet will be serving all 20 initially planned destinations.

These include Montreal and Toronto in Canada, the Colgan network plan also calling for services from Continental's Cleveland, Ohio hub to Chicago Midway (not to be served by Q400s from Newark) and Baltimore Washington International. Other destinations to be served from Newark include Buffalo, N.Y.; Burlington, Vt.; Columbus, Ohio; Greensboro, N.C.; Hartsford, Conn.; Manchester, N.H.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; Portland, Maine; Providence, R.I.; Richmond, Va.; and Syracuse, N.Y.