FILLING THE AIRPORT VOID

DEXTER — Walking into the Cape Air terminal at Watertown International Airport on Monday was a bit like walking onto the set of a movie or television show before the actors have arrived.

All of the props were in place — gray benches interspersed with plastic plants, a pot of coffee near the door, a ticket counter and a TSA checkpoint.

But the room was devoid of passengers and its walls ended abruptly about 10 feet in the air. All in all, it lacked the normal hustle and bustle of an airport terminal.

Station supervisor Richard B. Corbett was standing at the faux-marble Cape Air ticket counter, waiting for storm-downed power to be restored so he could check passenger lists. That the plane was two hours behind schedule did not concern him. The first flight would not depart for another 15 hours or so.

"I think we're all set to go," Mr. Corbett said. "We just need to get a plane in and we'll be pretty much all ready."

Nine months after Big Sky Airlines ceased commercial flights and went out of business, Cape Air of Hyannis, Mass., is betting it can fill the void left at Massena, Ogdensburg and Watertown airports.

Today, the airline will begin offering three daily nonstop flights from the three local airports to Albany International Airport.

Passengers will leave from a temporary terminal at Watertown International Airport until a $621,711 renovation of the main terminal is complete. This week, Continental Construction Co., Gouverneur, was putting in carpeting and waiting for a delivery of windows and doors.

A tentative date for the grand opening of the new terminal has been set for Oct. 8.

That they have to start their operations in a former maintenance facility in the airport's south hangar does not seem to have discouraged either Cape Air officials or the new passengers they hope to serve.

Andrew W. Bonney, Cape Air vice president of planning, said local response had been "very positive." As of Monday, the company had 117 bookings through December for flights departing from Watertown.

As part of a three-county advertising campaign, Cape Air has been offering an introductory one-way ticket price to Albany of $49. The price will increase to $55 after Sept. 30, Mr. Bonney said.

Cape Air was awarded a two-year Essential Air Service subsidy by the U.S. Department of Transportation in March, following the collapse of the Billings, Mont., airline, Big Sky.

The DOT agreed to provide Cape Air with a $3,879,863 annual subsidy, which meant the airline was able to offer low fares, Mr. Bonney said.

To avert weather delays that plagued Big Sky during its 10-month tenure, Cape Air will overnight a plane in a heated hangar at each of the three north country airports. The company will keep spare aircraft in Albany and Hyannis for overbooked flights, Mr. Bonney said.

Cape Air also has secured ticket and baggage agreements with most major airlines, with Southwest being the exception. The agreements will allow customers to book flights with either carrier using a single ticket and single baggage check.

Jefferson County Administrator Robert F. Hagemann III said the new carrier would help fill an area's need.

"With a community this size, we need commercial air service," he said. "The short amount of time Big Sky was here had a major and very positive impact on the traveling public. People were using the local airport much more so than they had been historically."

In 2006, with USAirways providing flights to Pittsburgh, Watertown International Airport had 3,828 so-called enplanements, or departing passengers.

When Big Sky began offering service to Boston and Albany in 2007, enplanements increased to 7,467.

In part because of Mr. Hagemann's input, Cape Air officials agreed to departure times aimed at helping residents connect to flights to Washington, D.C.; Cincinnati, Ohio; Atlanta, Ga.; New York City; Baltimore, Md.; Orlando, Fla., and Charlotte, N.C.

With ticket prices that rivaled the cost of a tank of gas, Mr. Hagemann said he expected the Cape Air service to appeal to a broad base of customers, including military contractors and tourists.

"Everybody needs to understand what the opportunities are," he said. "It's not just going to be Watertown to Albany, it's going to be Watertown as starting point."