United to offer Moline to Washington D.C. flights

United Airlines late next month will begin offering daily nonstop flights between the Quad City International Airport and Washington. D.C.

Trans States Airlines, operating as United Express, will provide the service on a 50-seat Embraer E145 regional jet, according to a news release from the airport in Moline, Ill.

Flights will leave Moline at 8:22 a.m. and arrive at Dulles International Airport at 11:42 a.m. The return flight will leave Dulles at 10:02 p.m. and arrives at 11:21 p.m. (All times are local.) The first United Express flight will arrive from Washington, D.C., on Sunday evening, Oct. 25. The first departure to Washington, D.C., will be on Monday morning, Oct. 26.

Bruce Carter, director of aviation at the Quad City International Airport, said financial support from the state, the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce and Metropolitan Airport Authority of Rock Island County played a critical role in securing the flights.

'The state of Illinois supplied a $1.5 million grant through legislation known as the I-FLY Act,” Carter said. 'We went after that pot of money and convinced United that it would be a good route for them.

'The community had to come up with a $400,000 match, so $200,000 in cash came from the Quad Cities Chamber and $200,000 came from the airport authority. That's how we got it accomplished.”

Approximately 10,000 passengers travel each year between the Quad Cities and Washington, D.C.

Carter said United management representatives were told that direct flights between the Quad Cities and Washington, D.C., are essential to the region, primarily due to operations at Rock Island Arsenal.

The arsenal, an active Army facility, is the largest employer in the Quad Cities.

Marty Lenss, director of The Eastern Iowa Airport, said there may be some impact from the flights. He expressed confidence that travelers will opt for more frequency of one-stop service from Cedar Rapids to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.