Southwest Rumors...?!

I just found an interesting little thing over at flytoledo.com. They have posted a rumor front-and-center on their main page about Southwest Airlines considering pulling out of saturated Detroit Metro and relocating their Detroit area services right here at good 'ol Toledo Express.

On the surface, it makes a ton of sense. Southwest is known for using smaller regional airports in the nation's largest metropolitan areas, such as Midway in Chicago, Islip in NYC, and Burbank out in LA. So basing their Detroit service out of Toledo would fit well with that pattern. Toledo also has good runway infrastructure (link is PDF file) in place, with a 10,600' runway and a 5,600' runway, both able to serve SWA's 737s.

However, a look deep into the inner workings of TOL reveals trouble. The Port Authority has been having trouble keeping even the small regional carriers serving here. Shuttle America pulled out two weeks ago, and ATA Connection has been having problems with the PA as well. The Port hasn't done a good job of promoting use of the field, and under the leadership of [sarcasm]the illustrious[/sarcasm] mayor Jack Ford, snow removal and similar services have been trimmed.

So to make a long story short, I would love to see SWA come here. It would really bump up our air carrier traffic count, and would help give TOL more of a "big airport" feel. Unfortunately, I just don't see it happening.