Back when I was taking flying lessons at Evergreen Field in Vancouver in the mid-1990s, there was an adage that circulated among the flight instructors and pilots there: "How do you make a small fortune in aviation? You start with a large one."

For a little over a year now, Kent Craford, formerly a lobbyist with the Gallatin Group, and a couple of associates, have set out to disprove that adage. During a time when airlines have been going bankrupt left and right, Craford and his partners launched a new airline. SeaPort Airlines, initially offering 10 daily commuter flights from Portland to Seattle, is not only thriving but growing. Flying nine-passenger Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, SeaPort has now expanded to providing regular air service to Pendleton, Astoria and Newport and will soon be offering four new commuter routes in Arkansas.

"In the post-9/11 world," Craford told me, "we identified a need and moved to fill it. Remember when Congressman (Peter) DeFazio threw a fit when he was pulled out of line at PDX for a security check and complained that he was one of the congressmen that established the TSA regulations? Well, we realized that business travelers were being terribly inconvenienced by the TSA regulations. So we decided to right-size the platform for the market and offered them a way to get from Portland to Seattle without dealing with airport security."

Transportation Security Administration regulations apply only to aircraft that carry 30 passengers or more. Because SeaPort's aircraft are smaller, business travelers to Seattle can enjoy commuting without the hassle of airport security screeners.

"I supported Bush," Craford said, "and was involved with his campaign. But the TSA was a big mistake. Making the screeners federal employees was the biggest expansion of the federal government we've seen. Although it serves as a deterrent, the TSA really isn't very effective. In random testing something like 70 percent of the attempts to smuggle things onto airplanes are successful. By avoiding security our passengers can arrive 15 minutes before flight time, show their I.D. and be in Seattle in 40 minutes."

The other advantage SeaPort offers to business commuters is that their flights arrive at Boeing Field in Seattle, rather than at SeaTac.

"The crown jewel of our operation," Craford said, "is that we fly into Boeing Field. That saves about 45 minutes of driving compared to flying into SeaTac."

I asked Craford whether SeaPort had regular customers.

"Not only do we have regulars," he said, "we have evangelists. We have one person with retail operations in both Seattle and Portland who said that SeaPort air has been a 'game-changer' for them. I suppose if we'd had an aviation background, we'd have never tried this. But a political hack like me and two real estate guys didn't know any better. What's interesting is free enterprise is like water flowing downhill. You can't stop it and it seeks its own level. If there's a need, it gets filled, and a business succeeds as a result."

Portland Mayor Sam Adams has an economic development task force that has promised to bring "green" jobs to Portland to solve our unemployment problem. The group has developed elaborate timelines for nurturing certain industries. Unfortunately the timeline continues to be revised to extend the research phase and delay the implementation. The reason is simple. Rather than letting the waters of free enterprise seek their own level, they are trying to dig canals to channel those waters. And the more they dig, the more stagnant the waters become.

They need to take a lesson from Kent Craford and the guys at SeaPort Airlines.

Dave Lister is a small-business owner who served on Portland's Small Business Advisory Council.

SEAPORT AIRLINES' SUCCESS

HEADLINE: A high-flying lesson

on free enterprise

dave lister

B ack when I was taking flying lessons at Evergreen Field in Vancouver in the mid-1990s, there was an adage that circulated among the flight instructors and pilots there: "How do you make a small fortune in aviation? You start with a large one."

For a little over a year now, Kent Craford, formerly a lobbyist with the Gallatin Group, and a couple of associates, have set out to disprove that adage. During a time when airlines have been going bankrupt left and right, Craford and his partners launched a new airline. SeaPort Airlines, initially offering 10 daily commuter flights from Portland to Seattle, is not only thriving but growing. Flying nine-passenger Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, SeaPort has now expanded to providing regular air service to Pendleton, Astoria and Newport and will soon be offering four new commuter routes in Arkansas.

"In the post-9/11 world," Craford told me, "we identified a need and moved to fill it. Remember when Congressman (Peter) DeFazio threw a fit when he was pulled out of line at PDX for a security check and complained that he was one of the congressmen that established the TSA regulations? Well, we realized that business travelers were being terribly inconvenienced by the TSA regulations. So we decided to right-size the platform for the market and offered them a way to get from Portland to Seattle without dealing with airport security."

Transportation Security Administration regulations apply only to aircraft that carry 30 passengers or more. Because SeaPort's aircraft are smaller, business travelers to Seattle can enjoy commuting without the hassle of airport security screeners.

"I supported Bush," Craford said, "and was involved with his campaign. But the TSA was a big mistake. Making the screeners federal employees was the biggest expansion of the federal government we've seen. Although it serves as a deterrent, the TSA really isn't very effective. In random testing something like 70 percent of the attempts to smuggle things onto airplanes are successful. By avoiding security our passengers can arrive 15 minutes before flight time, show their I.D. and be in Seattle in 40 minutes."

The other advantage SeaPort offers to business commuters is that their flights arrive at Boeing Field in Seattle, rather than at SeaTac.

"The crown jewel of our operation," Craford said, "is that we fly into Boeing Field. That saves about 45 minutes of driving compared to flying into SeaTac."

I asked Craford whether SeaPort had regular customers.

"Not only do we have regulars," he said, "we have evangelists. We have one person with retail operations in both Seattle and Portland who said that SeaPort air has been a 'game-changer' for them. I suppose if we'd had an aviation background, we'd have never tried this. But a political hack like me and two real estate guys didn't know any better. What's interesting is free enterprise is like water flowing downhill. You can't stop it and it seeks its own level. If there's a need, it gets filled, and a business succeeds as a result."

Portland Mayor Sam Adams has an economic development task force that has promised to bring "green" jobs to Portland to solve our unemployment problem. The group has developed elaborate timelines for nurturing certain industries. Unfortunately the timeline continues to be revised to extend the research phase and delay the implementation. The reason is simple. Rather than letting the waters of free enterprise seek their own level, they are trying to dig canals to channel those waters. And the more they dig, the more stagnant the waters become.

They need to take a lesson from Kent Craford and the guys at SeaPort Airlines.

Dave Lister is a small-business owner who served on Portland's Small Business Advisory Council.