Raleigh-Durham International Airport

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TAKING OFF

2015 ANNUAL REPORT

– PARIS –

PARIS BECOMES RDU'S 2ND EUROPEAN DESTINATION

RDU’s air service development team spent more than a decade laying the groundwork with air carriers, community partners and regional leaders to establish a second daily transatlantic nonstop route from Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

As the old saying goes, hard work indeed pays off. In September 2015, Delta Air Lines announced nonstop service from RDU to Paris-Charles DeGaulle International Airport would begin on May 12, 2016.

The airline made the announcement to a large crowd in Terminal 2 on September 24, 2015. Flanking Delta Vice President Tori Forbes-Roberts as the announcement was made were two dozen business and community leaders, giving a strong visual symbol of the community support this flight has from our region.

Delta will fly daily nonstop to Paris using B-757-200 aircraft. The flight is timed to arrive in Paris with convenient connections to more than 75 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa via Delta’s alliance partner Air France.

Each year, 1.5 million people begin or end their international journey from RDU. Of those, about 750,000 are destined for or originate in Europe. And of that 750,000, only 100,000 are able to take advantage of American Airlines’ daily nonstop flight from London-Heathrow.

While the viability of the nonstop flight is strong, an investment fund involving the Authority’s four governing bodies and the private sector is guaranteed by the Research Triangle Foundation. This supplements Airport Authority fee waivers to offset any revenue shortfall in the flight’s first year of operation.

The flight is expected to draw many passengers from throughout central and Eastern North Carolina, beyond the immediate Research Triangle Region. The flight is also expected to have a $25 million positive economic impact in the first year of operation and contribute to 100 new jobs.

RDU’s air service development team spent more than a decade laying the groundwork with air carriers, community partners and regional leaders to establish a second daily transatlantic nonstop route from Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

As the old saying goes, hard work indeed pays off. In September 2015, Delta Air Lines announced nonstop service from RDU to Paris-Charles DeGaulle International Airport would begin on May 12, 2016.

The airline made the announcement to a large crowd in Terminal 2 on September 24, 2015. Flanking Delta Vice President Tori Forbes-Roberts as the announcement was made were two dozen business and community leaders, giving a strong visual symbol of the community support this flight has from our region.

Delta will fly daily nonstop to Paris using B-757-200 aircraft. The flight is timed to arrive in Paris with convenient connections to more than 75 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa via Delta’s alliance partner Air France.

Each year, 1.5 million people begin or end their international journey from RDU. Of those, about 750,000 are destined for or originate in Europe. And of that 750,000, only 100,000 are able to take advantage of American Airlines’ daily nonstop flight from London-Heathrow.

While the viability of the nonstop flight is strong, an investment fund involving the Authority’s four governing bodies and the private sector is guaranteed by the Research Triangle Foundation. This supplements Airport Authority fee waivers to offset any revenue shortfall in the flight’s first year of operation.

The flight is expected to draw many passengers from throughout central and Eastern North Carolina, beyond the immediate Research Triangle Region. The flight is also expected to have a $25 million positive economic impact in the first year of operation and contribute to 100 new jobs.