Spurred by the planned departure of United Airlines from Palmdale Regional Airport next month, Palmdale officials say the city will assume primary responsibility for developing passenger service at the struggling facility and reduce the role of Los Angeles World Airports in the effort.
Palmdale Mayor James C. Ledford Jr. said the city will take over the Los Angeles agency's lease of the terminal, parking lot and taxiways that sit on U.S. Air Force property and proceed with plans to attract another major airline to serve the Antelope and Santa Clarita valleys.
"This effectively removes LAWA from the airport's operation," Ledford said. "We have been diligent on this, but I don't think we've had a willing partner."
Palmdale would welcome continued support from the Los Angeles agency, Ledford said, but it would be accountable to the city and its role would be scaled back.
Gina Marie Lindsey, director of Los Angeles World Airports, said officials at her agency would not fight Palmdale's takeover of the lease.
"If this is the direction they want to go, we won't be an obstacle," Lindsey said. "We will facilitate anything they want to do."
Los Angeles World Airports operates Los Angeles International Airport, Ontario International Airport, Van Nuys Municipal Airport and Palmdale Regional Airport, where it acquired more than 17,000 acres in 1970.
Palmdale and Ontario have been part of LAWA's effort to shift the growth in air travel away from busy LAX to other airports in the region -- a policy supported by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
But eight airlines have come and gone from Palmdale since 1971, when Golden West Airlines began flights to LAX. In September, United Airlines, the latest carrier, announced it would end its four flights a day to San Francisco on Dec. 7.
United's planes have been less than a third full, and the carrier has received almost $2 million in government subsidies to provide service for 18 months. Operations began in June 2007.
Los Angeles World Airports officials contend that the Palmdale market has been difficult to develop over the years despite steady population growth in the region and a heavy concentration of aerospace firms. The situation has been aggravated by high fuel costs and an unprecedented downturn in the airline industry.
