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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowRepublic Airways Holdings Inc. said Tuesday afternoon it will create as many as 300 jobs in Indianapolis next year by bringing
Frontier Airlines’ Operation Control Center to the city.
Locally based Republic purchased Denver-based
Frontier in October for $109 million.
Republic said it will expand its headquarters on the city’s north side
to support the transfer of Frontier’s control center and consolidate back-office operations from
various locations throughout Frontier’s network.
The company plans to begin hiring
dispatchers, engineers, crew schedulers and other operations positions in the second quarter of next
year.
“This move will allow the administration of all of our airlines to be accomplished
under one roof, which will help provide our co-workers out on the line with an efficient and consistent support
network,” Republic CEO Bryan Bedford said in a prepared statement.
Republic said it would offer about 140 Denver-based
Frontier workers employment in Indianapolis, with the balance of the potential 300 jobs consisting of new hires. However,
it is unclear how many of the Denver workers will elect to transfer here, said Republic spokesman Carlo Bertolini.
Republic last month hinted that more jobs would be coming to Indianapolis after announcing that Milwaukee had landed up
to 800 additional jobs as the result of Republic’s acquisition of Frontier and of Milwaukee-based Midwest Airlines,
earlier this year. Republic was considering Indianapolis and Milwaukee as the home of those workers, which include flight
crews, jobs in heavy maintenance and technical support.
For the 300 new jobs in Indianapolis, Indiana Economic
Development Corp. offered Republic up to $3.8 million in performance-based tax credits and up to $50,000 in training grants
based on job creation. The city of Indianapolis and Indianapolis Economic Development Inc. will request property tax abatement
to the Metropolitan Development Commission.
Republic was founded as Chautauqua Airlines in 1973 in Jamestown, N.Y.,
and relocated to Indianapolis in 1994. Following recent acquisitions of Frontier and Milwaukee-based Midwest Airlines in July,
the company employs about 11,000 and operates 288 regional jets with approximately 1,600 daily flights.
Republic
shares were fetching $7.60 in late-afternoon trading.
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