Report: airport traffic down compared to summer
- Thread starter 30ashopper
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Hmmm...I wonder if it has anything to do with the general decline in the economy... anybody know if other airports around the country are also experiencing a decrease in attendance?
I think part of it is the process of discovering the right level of service. Southwest has given them a really good spike in passenger count, but I'm guessing that 60% load is probably going to lead to some flight reductions (Will/singing chicken, any thoughts on that?) in the short term until demand strengthens again.
As a frequent flyer, here's what I see:
-Fares are down out of ECP compared to PFN, but not across the board. You can count on low fares on any route both Delta and Southwest service. Sometimes, fares are low where there is no competition, sometimes not. Fares are usually much more competitive with VPS, which used to be much lower than PFN. I have only flown out of VPS twice this year - in a normal year prior to ECP, I would have flown out of VPS probably 60% of the time.
-The long term parking lot is full much of the time, and the new expansion to it is also full. Either they mis-sized it, or they have more flyers than they anticipated.
-The % full seat rate has got to be affected by the size of planes at ECP. PFN accomodated ONLY the small CRJs, while there are some flights now in "real" airliners.
-The oil spill HAS to have affected air travel into PC. Lord knows, it's affected everything else related to tourism.
-The airport is oversized for the current traffic. But, I thought that was the whole point - having room to grow - regardless of whether or not you think "St. Joe Int'l" was a boondoggle or not.
-Fares are down out of ECP compared to PFN, but not across the board. You can count on low fares on any route both Delta and Southwest service. Sometimes, fares are low where there is no competition, sometimes not. Fares are usually much more competitive with VPS, which used to be much lower than PFN. I have only flown out of VPS twice this year - in a normal year prior to ECP, I would have flown out of VPS probably 60% of the time.
-The long term parking lot is full much of the time, and the new expansion to it is also full. Either they mis-sized it, or they have more flyers than they anticipated.
-The % full seat rate has got to be affected by the size of planes at ECP. PFN accomodated ONLY the small CRJs, while there are some flights now in "real" airliners.
-The oil spill HAS to have affected air travel into PC. Lord knows, it's affected everything else related to tourism.
-The airport is oversized for the current traffic. But, I thought that was the whole point - having room to grow - regardless of whether or not you think "St. Joe Int'l" was a boondoggle or not.
Amen. I've been twice on uneventful weekends and both times the short and long term lots were filled and the temporary on grass parking had 40+ cars in it. Maybe it's just a lot of people hanging out at the airport for the coffee and chicklets.treefrog said:
Gee - the city that lost out on Southwest sounds a little bitter. News Flash: tourism travel to Emerald Coast plummets after summer.
I posted this on the NWFBIA thread earlier:
Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport is drawing nearly 3 times the passengers than the old one
Like I said.
3X the passengers is believeable. PFN was incredibly sleepy. There are folks moving through ECP.
I'm not a booster, in fact I hated to see PFN go. As a traveler, I just love the convenience of a tiny airport. I'm just observing how it works out from a seat at the gate waiting to board every week or two.
SJ - You walk inside, and there are half a dozen people waiting to pick up someone incoming. Yet, the short term lot is full. Makes me wonder if they are using short term for employee parking. Either that, or there are a lot of folks paying a steep tariff for longer term parking.