JSX to add Wednesday flights to Dallas
Christina Holt/News-Sun
JSX, the newest airline service at Lea County Regional Airport flying to Dallas, will be extending its operations from three to four days a week to meet the needs of the community.
Beginning Sept. 24, the service will be offered on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, said Jennifer Grassham, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Lea County.
Grassham announced the addition of the Wednesday service to the City of Hobbs Commission at its meeting on Aug. 25.
JSX airline was operating three days a week, but EDCLC received feedback that offering the service on Wednesdays would be beneficial to business travelers.
“This makes sure we are not dark three days in the middle of the week,” Grassham said. “It wasn’t quite conducive to the business traveler. Leaving on Monday and not coming back until Friday was quite difficult.”
During the meeting, commissioners voted to accept a Rural Air Service Enhancement Grant from the New Mexico Department of Transportation Aviation Division.
The grant application was submitted in partnership with EDCLC and the City of Hobbs to help with the startup of the JSX airline service in Hobbs.
The grant will provide $2.5 million in funding over the next two years for the provision of the regional charter airline service, according to the resolution.
The grant provides for 90 percent of the funding, the resolution read. It requires a 10 percent local match to be provided by the City of Hobbs and Lea County.
“I think it’s really important to the city as it allows for the startup of a new airline,” Grassham said.
JSX provides jet air service from Hobbs to Dallas Love Field Airport in Texas, making it the third airline service provider at the airport in Hobbs. United Airlines also provides flights to and from Denver, Colo., and Houston, Texas.
Passengers on the JSX flights do not have to go through TSA to board the plane. The company converted 50-seat airplanes into 30-seats, providing a first-class experience, according to the company.
The price of an airline ticket with JSX is comparable to other airlines.
“As far as pricing goes, it continues to be right in line,” Grassham said.
Grassham compared prices with JSX out of Hobbs and Southwest out of Midland, Texas, for a weekend trip to Dallas beginning on Friday and coming back on Sunday.
“That’s a round-trip cost of $400” with JSX, Grassham said. “It would be $455” for the same type of flight using Southwest in Midland.
To have the JSX airline service in Hobbs, a minimum revenue guarantee of $1 million was part of the agreement. This is similar to the agreement LCEDC has with United Airlines, with the subsidy shared between Lea County and City of Hobbs.
For the JSX agreement, the City of Hobbs and Lea County are each responsible for half that $1 million revenue guarantee, or $500,000 each, she said.
