By James Pilcher
Enquirer staff writer

HEBRON - Delta Air Lines says it heard Cincinnati customers' No. 1 complaint. Thursday, it unveiled a new fare structure that cuts many prices and simplifies the number of fares available on individual flights.

Now, the question is, will those customers hear Delta? More important, will those travelers who bypass the local airport and drive up to two hours for a lower fare trust the Atlanta-based airline when it says these new low prices are here for the long haul?

Experts and local travelers alike say a lot depends not only on Delta's $2 million-plus regional marketing campaign that kicks off this weekend, but also on the fares themselves.

"I was looking at two flights yesterday and then looked at them today after they announced the lower fares, and one was $600 lower, and the other was $100 lower," said Bob Elliston, president and chief executive officer of Turfway Park and the incoming chairman of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.

"If everyone has the same experience I had, this will do wonders for Delta in this community.

"Delta is obviously a very important part of our community, but at the same time, people of Northern Kentucky and the region want what they perceive as an equitable opportunity for affordable air travel."

Delta, which operates its second-largest hub at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, officially unveiled its Simplifares program Thursday in what experts said could be a test for a nationwide effort.

The new system promises that no coach fare will be more than $499 each way before taxes and fees - even last-minute unrestricted fares.

It also simplifies the number of fares in coach down to six, although Delta officials say actual prices can change day to day for particular flights to match demand or if lower-priced seats sell out.

It also eliminates the Saturday-night-stay requirement for 14-day discounts, while lowering the change fee to $50 from $100.

Delta chief marketing officer Paul Matsen said business-fare cuts could be up to 30 percent on average and leisure fares could go down about 10 percent on average.

That will be a major focus of a marketing campaign geared at restoring that trust.

Delta plans print, TV and radio spots beginning today and will have marketing staff in person at Reds, Bengals and high school football games.

The campaign also will use mobile billboards powered by bicycles and Mini Coopers decked out to look like Delta jets.

"We are proud of the fact that our ads have none of the small print that is normally associated with a fare change or a fare sale," Matsen said.

BestFares.com founder and CEO Tom Parsons said it would all boil down to the prices.

"They should have done this a long time ago, and it will all depend on whether they can get those fares down enough where people are willing to pay a little more for non-stop service but not feel gouged," Parsons said.

A check of some fares on www.delta.com Thursday, compared with Wednesday, found some significant cuts, especially for tickets bought with less than a week's notice.

The price of a last-minute unrestricted round-trip coach ticket from Cincinnati to Seattle, for example, went from $2,185 late Wednesday to $1,001, including taxes.

A restricted last-minute round-trip ticket, a new addition to the fare system here, cost $738.80.

And while most leisure fares did fall, prices went up to two cities for a 14-day advance ticket: Chicago and Grand Rapids, Mich. But a 14-day fare to Dallas went from $420 to $298 overnight.

If the fares are what Delta advertises, it would be welcome relief to local travelers, especially since Cincinnati has long had the reputation as one of the most expensive airports in the country, a situation created in part by Delta's dominance here (90 percent-plus market share).

The federal Transportation Department said earlier this year that the local airport ranked second-highest for fares in the second quarter of 2003.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics found that Cincinnati fares have risen 23 percent since 1995, compared with 9 percent nationally.

Officials from both the Greater Cincinnati and the Northern Kentucky chambers were on hand Thursday for the announcement and enthusiastically endorsed the new program, saying it could draw more traffic to the region, which could spark the convention business and even long-term economic development and business retention..

Airline analyst Jamie Baker of JP Morgan said Thursday in a research note that the move could mean a short-term dip in Delta's revenue but could be positive over the long haul as the lower fares stimulate the Cincinnati market.

He said the move could keep potential low-cost entries out of the Delta hub here.

"Heretofore, Cincinnati likely appealed to certain competitors, given Delta's egregious and archaic pricing structure," Baker wrote.

Matsen agreed with Baker's characterization and acknowledged that a key part of the program's success will hinge upon having the lower fares available when people look online.

He said it is the only way to get potential customers to trust the company and give the local fares a try.

A November 2003 study commissioned by local airport officials found that more than 2,500 travelers a day from the Cincinnati market use one of the surrounding airports such as Louisville, Dayton and Indianapolis. That equates into more than one in four passengers from this area.

And it still might be hard to win some customers of those back, especially leisure travelers such as Carl Uebelacker of Hyde Park. He said a fare he had been watching to Norfolk, Va., and checked as recently as Wednesday actually went up Thursday after the new prices were loaded into Delta's computers.

"I'm buying four tickets, and the combined difference between here and Dayton is $236," Uebelacker said. "How many steak dinners can I buy for that?"

Matsen acknowledged that prices still could change overnight and that cheaper seats on that particular flight might have sold out.

E-mail jpilcher@enquirer.com

Here are lowest fares for eight cities from the Dayton airport, a 66-mile drive from downtown Cincinnati (compared to 13 miles for CVG). The Dayton airport, located in suburban Vandalia, pulls the most local travelers from the Greater Cincinnati market. Virtually all flights from Dayton include at least one connection, while several include two connections. Parking costs at the two airports are comparable ($7 a day in a long-term lot in Dayton; $9 a day in a garage at CVG).