AirTran Traffic Increases 50 Percent in First Quarter
Posted on: Friday, 21 April 2006, 03:03 CDT
By Dan Voorhis, The Wichita Eagle, Kan.
Apr. 21--The Fair Fares program appears to be making an impact.
In the first quarter of 2006, AirTran Airways saw a 50 percent jump in passengers, to 33,686 from 22,320 in 2005.
Some of that may come from an uptick in the economy, specials run by AirTran or Delta's cutback in flights to Atlanta, said airport director Victor White.
But White has heard from people who are booking tickets on AirTran through the Fair Fares A2B program, designed to increase business travel on the airline.
Fair Fares is a campaign by the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce to encourage businesses to use AirTran.
In February and March, Fair Fares offered two tickets on AirTran for the price of one, if they were booked through the A2B program. About 1,600 people have joined the program since Feb. 1, said Ryan Entz, spokesman for the Chamber.
"That promotion really did some things for us," he said.
The city of Wichita and Sedgwick County have provided AirTran millions of dollars in subsidies since 2002. The state of Kansas is poised to supply $5 million a year.
In the first quarter, AirTran nearly matched the passenger volume it had in the same period of 2003, its best first quarter ever. The airline began service in Wichita in May 2002.
"We're thrilled to see that," White said.
But overall, passenger traffic at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport fell in the first three months.
In March, 256,391 passengers flew into and out of the airport. That is down 6.4 percent from March 2005.
For the first quarter, traffic was 667,780, down 4.1 percent for the year.
"They are changing their fares so rapidly, mostly to cover their cost of fuel," White said.
Reach Dan Voorhis at (316) 268-6577 or dvoorhis@wichitaeagle.com [mailto:dvoorhis@wichitaeagle.com].
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Copyright (c) 2006, The Wichita Eagle, Kan.
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Source: The Wichita Eagle (Wichita, Kan.)
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