ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times

DATE: Friday, December 15, 1995              TAG: 9512150078
SECTION: BUSINESS                 PAGE: A-15 EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS

RULES PROBABLY WON'T HINDER ROANOKE'S REGIONAL CARRIERS

Operations by regional carriers at Roanoke Regional Airport probably will not be hindered by the new FAA rules governing commuter planes, said airport spokesman Mark Courtney.

Nineteen of the 33 regional flights that leave the airport each day are on airplanes with 30 or fewer seats, meaning they fall under the new regulations, according to the Roanoke Regional Airport Commission's monthly report for November, the latest available. Of the 42 daily departures, 33 are aboard regional aircraft with the remainer on jets. Of the 1,850 seats available on those flights, 54 percent are on regional aircraft, the commission said.

Some of the regional carriers that operate under the umbrella of major airlines already are operating under the tougher rules, and others have been gradually phasing them in, Courtney said.

All the carriers have known the changes have been coming and should be ready for them, he said. "It won't be noticeable here."

LENGTH: Short :   27 lines