Posted on: Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Travel cost for UH football is sky-high
By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Staff Writer
The cost of competition is getting steeper for the University of Hawai'i football team, one of the college game's most well-traveled squads.
Cost of UH football air travel for 2005 season
Game Cost
Michigan State* $108,632
Idaho $119,700
Louisiana Tech* $104,086
San Jose State $115,003
Nevada $122,070
* — Combined commercial and charter flights; others are charter flights.
Source: UH UH officials said the school will spend $569,491 for the combination of charter and commercial flights this season. Last year it spent $314,141 on four trips.
Along with an extra game, UH spokeswoman Lois Manin said, "it is pretty much the fuel. The basic cost of transportation, anything that involves fuel, has gone up and has had an (impact) on our travel."
Last year transportation costs for the school's 19 teams accounted for 15 percent of the athletic department's $21 million in expenses.
In football, UH will use Aloha Airlines charters to get to games at Idaho, San Jose State and Nevada and employ a combination of commercial flights and charters for the two other road games, Michigan State and Louisiana Tech, Manin said.
Manin said UH will fly commercial to Houston and charter to Louisiana Tech, and go commercial to Chicago and charter to Michigan State.
UH officials said the school had hoped to defray some of the costs of the $108,632 trip to play Michigan State on Sept. 10 in East Lansing, Mich., by chartering a larger plane all the way from Honolulu and selling seats to boosters and fans. "But that plan didn't fly, no pun intended," Manin said.
UH is contracted to receive a $350,000 guarantee for the game.
UH officials said charter flights, which are common in Division I-A, are more comfortable and convenient for the team.
The rising cost of fuel that has hit automobile drivers hard at the gas station has also affected airlines. "We've experienced an 85 percent increase in fuel costs," said Stu Glauberman, Aloha Airlines spokesman. He said Aloha is paying $2.50 per gallon after paying $1.35 per gallon a year ago.
A fuel specialist with the International Air Transport Association said the rise in aviation fuel costs, "just since last August, has been staggering."
Glauberman said fuel costs account for approximately 38 percent of the charter costs.
"Aloha Airlines did do some other things to mitigate the fuel costs to try and make it more affordable and more doable for UH," Glauberman said.
He said the airline made "operational changes in positioning some flights" ... "to get the price down a little for (UH)."
Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.
In large part because of the rise in fuel charges, it will cost the Warriors on average nearly 40 percent more per mile to fly to their five road games this year than last year.
Expensive skies
