Twin City airport fights for flights.

• Position: Smith Reynolds Airport - Brief Article

When US Airways Express pulled out of Smith Reynolds Airport in January 2000, leaving Winston-Salem with no commercial flights, companies hardly noticed. "Most employees already flew in and out of Greensboro," says Russ Conley, Wachovia Corp. general services manager.

Airport officials can't afford to be so cavalier. They need 10,000 passengers a year to qualify for $500,000 in Federal Aviation Administration funds. Among needs -- $4 million in improvements, including runway repaving.

Clearing the FAA hurdle won't be easy. US Airways, part of Arlington, Va.-based US Airways Group Inc., attracted only 7,000 passengers in 1999. Now, Smith Reynolds has 1,700 charter passengers that count toward the FAA requirement. Airport Director Ed Cox also faces skepticism from travel agents and business travelers who prefer Piedmont Triad International Airport, 16 miles away.

"We as a region would be better off trying to consolidate and have as many flights as possible out of one airport, rather than trying to create demand in Winston-Salem that is not there," says Nancy Dunn, president of Aladdin Travel and Meeting Planners in Winston-Salem.

Cox does at least have the backing of Smith Reynolds consultants. Last summer, Keil Hendrickson Group of Minneapolis proposed feeder...