MoreRNO and what it means for Northern Nevada

Hopefully this really gets done in the time frame they’re promising, but I’m not confident in that.

If you’ve flown out of the Reno-Tahoe International Airport recently, you might have noticed the lane closures, construction, and somewhat longer wait times getting in and out of the ticketing area. This is all part of the MoreRNO initiative by the Reno-Tahoe Aiport Authority (the same one that just canned the air races).

I think this is stems from every medium-sized city’s growing pains. Reno has been expanding quite a bit since I moved here about five years ago. Dirt lots have become luxury apartments (or ones soon to be) and old motels are being demolished along 4th Street. We can thank the influx of tech hubs (Tesla, Apple, Google, etc) and the exodus from California. Accordingly, the airport has been seeing more traffic: 4.3 million passengers in 2022 — a mere 3% less than 2019’s numbers.

I believe airlines recognize this, too, as we’re seeing more flights into the region (23 nonstop destinations, at the time of writing). Austin, Tex. was added “recently” in 2021, which I can’t help but think this was because of the new Tesla Gigafactory in the area. We used to see service to Charlotte and Atlanta, too, but those were canned. Connections to major hubs like that offer more 1-stop international destinations in Europe and South America.

There was a startup airline “Aha!” that survived about a year, suddenly filing for bankruptcy in 2022. I had so much hope for that one. Reno/Tahoe hasn’t been a hub since Reno Air was bought out in the late 1990s. Alas, right idea (I think) at the wrong time. Pandemic travel was really hit-or-miss. I was especially bummed about the Reno-Boise flights that never saw the light of day, as Aha’s bankruptcy came before the inaugural flight. Nonstop flights to Boise have been absent since late 2019ish, despite the two cities not being that much different but still a somewhat unreasonable drive apart through the badlands of Oregon. But, at the time of Aha! being in the scene in summer of 2022, RNO was serving 33 nonstop destinations.

RNO domestic destinations (excluding California), June 2022

RNO California destinations, June 2022

Where am I going with this, you’re probably wondering, because I could go on about former airline service for another three paragraphs. If MoreRNO ends up being what it says its going to be (new concourse, “coming 2024ish”) and stays on schedule, I think it will serve the area well and bring more airlines and more routes in to the city. I believe international destinations will be somewhat more prevalent if customs areas are expanded, one example being Vancouver. Thomas Cook Airlines (now bankrupt) was going to start Reno-London flights but cited insufficient customs staff. More likely, connections to major hubs will come first, akin to Atlanta and Charlotte, and perhaps Washington. Southwest could seize an opportunity to bring back Reno-Boise flights before Alaska does. Leisure destinations, such as Jackson Hole (Allegiant), Napa County (Avelo), Nashville (Southwest), or Miami (American) could appear.

But MoreRNO can’t come as a standalone project. The city has to make itself a destination. Maybe that will come with the 4th Street gentrification or more events. We’ve got the snow sports in the winter and Lake Tahoe in the summer. I probably wouldn’t fly to another ski destination — we’ve got our own. Reno is making the right steps, but time will tell if the airlines are going to bite.