Virgin America airlines and Alaska Airlines are on the radar of Tampa International Airport chief executive Joe Lopano, whose air service expansion plans are taking shape in his third month on the job.
"We will begin analyzing what we need to do to convince them to make this market succeed," Lopano said Tuesday about the two carriers that serve multiple West Coast markets and provide cross-country service from Orlando.
Tampa has non-stop service to Los Angeles, but not to San Francisco, Seattle and San Diego.
He said at the Westshore Alliance business group's monthly luncheon Tuesday those are the two major U.S. airlines that do not serve Tampa.
"The only thing airlines want to know is, 'What can I do to make money?' " Lopano said.
Airlines are data junkies, so the first step is to provide them with information about route demand, he said.
"Then we must support that with stories about local businesses and people who can help sustain new flights," he said about his international and domestic expansion strategy.
Lopano also said he hoped charter service between Tampa and Cuba could begin within three months, with charter companies in the process of seeking permission from the Cuban government to provide flights there.
tjackovics@tampatrib.com
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