For the year ahead, airport director Ken Austin has a message for travelers frustrated with higher fares and fewer flights at Tallahassee Regional Airport: Think small.
"We are a small airport, and if I were to predict the industry's future for the next two years (in air travel) ... I would predict a movement back to the hubs," Austin said.
Tallahassee ranked 109th in passenger travel in 2004, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. It does not have a large customer base, and that has a negative effect on fares and frequency of flights, Austin said.
In addition, he said, the traditional "hub and spoke" arrangement long used by airlines to provide service to large metropolitan areas and smaller regional airports is on the wane. Large "legacy" carriers such as Delta Air Lines, Continental Airlines and US Airways already are cutting back their regional operations and concentrating on larger cities such as Atlanta and Dallas.
That means small airports such as Tallahassee's will be relying more on regional carriers to provide service, and those carriers will be keeping a sharp eye on profits.
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"We are a small airport, and if I were to predict the industry's future for the next two years (in air travel) ... I would predict a movement back to the hubs," Austin said.
Tallahassee ranked 109th in passenger travel in 2004, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. It does not have a large customer base, and that has a negative effect on fares and frequency of flights, Austin said.
In addition, he said, the traditional "hub and spoke" arrangement long used by airlines to provide service to large metropolitan areas and smaller regional airports is on the wane. Large "legacy" carriers such as Delta Air Lines, Continental Airlines and US Airways already are cutting back their regional operations and concentrating on larger cities such as Atlanta and Dallas.
That means small airports such as Tallahassee's will be relying more on regional carriers to provide service, and those carriers will be keeping a sharp eye on profits.
Article
