KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Coming off a year where McGhee-Tyson added new flights both inbound and outbound, two airlines are preparing to take-off on specialty flights for the college football season.
“Both, in all honesty, these flights, the airlines did it without us needing to ask them,” said Vice President of Marketing at the Metro Knoxville Airport Authority, Jim Evans. “I think it’s a benefit. In past years, we have asked airlines to put in special flights, specifically for bowl games, and they’ve seen from experiences if we put airplanes in Knoxville, Tennessee for the Vols, they will fill up.”
Delta and American have each added flights in and out of Knoxville.
Delta will have two flights for Vol away games this fall, one to Oklahoma City ahead of the Vols matchup against Oklahoma, and one to Fayetteville, Arkansas ahead of the Vols Oct. 5th game against the Razorbacks.
“Delta is committed to providing college football fans with convenient travel options to this fall’s biggest games. To meet growing demand, we’re offering nonstop flights from McGhee-Tyson Airport for fans traveling to the Tennessee vs. Oklahoma and Arkansas matchups, ensuring a seamless journey as they gear up to cheer on their teams,” a Delta spokesperson told WVLT News in a statement.
American added an outbound flight to Oklahoma City for the matchup with the Sooners and added inbound flights from Tampa for the game against Florida.
“A community that is booming like ours attracts more and more air service,” said Evans. ”Having a good track record of successful full airplanes that make money for the air carriers it really validates what were telling them when we have meetings.“
Right now, the flights to OKC are each priced at more than $1,000 with few seats remaining.
“When they first came on the market, you could get a bargain, but here we are a few days from the flight and they will charge a premium,” said Evans.
Adding most air carriers surge prices the closer you get to taking off.
The flights to Oklahoma are each set for Boeing 737′s that seat nearly 180 people, while the other flights are set for smaller regional jets that seat fewer people.
Folks at McGhee-Tyson said all updates and flight information is available on the airports website.
Copyright 2024 WVLT. All rights reserved.