"Growing Passenger Loads Still Light at Ontario, Calif.-Area Airports"

Monday, September 30, 2002

Growing Passenger Loads Still Light at Ontario, Calif.-Area Airports
The Business Press, Ontario, Calif.


The recovery of passenger traffic at the Inland Empire's two major
airports is strengthening. Numbers are still down sharply from last
year, however. 

The rates of decline in passenger numbers at Ontario and Palm Springs
international airports fell to their lowest levels in months in August
-- the final reporting period comparing flying trends before and after
the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. 

Ontario International Airport reported 7.8 percent fewer passengers in
August 2002 compared with the same month last year -- the best showing
since March. Palm Springs International Airport reported just less than
6 percent fewer passengers -- the desert resort's strongest recovery
report in the past year. 

"The bottom line is, we're still hurting," Ontario airport spokesman
Dennis Watson said. 

At Palm Springs, the introduction of new winter flights could put the
airport back into growth mode. 

"This year will put us right back to where we were prior to 9-11," said
Richard Strickland, deputy director of aviation for the city of Palm
Springs. 

To accurately distinguish growth from recovery, airports may need to
compare the rest of 2002 figures against the last months of 2000. 

Airports compile and analyze monthly passenger and cargo volumes to
determine how they stack up to activity for the same month the previous
year. For the past year, statistics have shown a sluggish recovery in
the wake of last year's terrorist attacks. 

In August 2001, both local airports, as well as Orange County's John
Wayne Airport, posted 8 percent gains in passenger volumes compared with
August 2000. The following month, traffic numbers plummeted 30 percent
to 40 percent following the attacks and the four-day shutdown of U.S.
commercial air traffic.

September 2002 statistics will be measured against that drastic drop.
Since October of last year, area airports have posted monthly drops of
10 percent to 20 percent compared with the same months the previous
year. 

Palm Springs lost some American Eagle and United Express commuter
flights canceled by the financially troubled carriers in the wake of the
attacks, Strickland said. Palm Springs might have returned to positive
passenger counts if not for the reduction in capacity, he said. 

Delta, Continental, Northwest, Horizon, United Express and Sun Country
airlines all have announced new or expanded flight schedules between
Palm Springs and Atlanta, Houston, Minneapolis, Sacramento and Denver.
Some of the new schedules begin in October, with full schedules in place
by December. 

Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, American Airlines and JetBlue
canceled some Ontario flights in the wake of the attacks. AeroMexico,
Frontier and Hawaiian airlines, however, added new service from Ontario
to Hermosillo, Mexico; Denver and Honolulu this year. 

Ontario reported 632,613 passengers in August, 7.8 percent fewer than in
August 2001. Almost 5,000 were international passengers, representing a
57 percent increase in fliers to and from Mexico, compared with last
year. Ontario volumes were down 8.5 percent for the first eight months,
compared with the same eight months of 2001. 

Just fewer than 4.4 million passengers have flown through Ontario so far
this year, 500,000 fewer than the same period in 2001. 

Palm Springs International Airport traffic was down 5.9 percent in
August, when 49,884 passengers flew in and out. Year-to-date passenger
volumes are down 13.2 percent. Palm Springs handled 763,756 passengers
between January and August. 

Both Inland airports tightened belts to deal with increased security
costs and reduced revenue. Ontario cut budgets 20 percent and adjusted
landing and rental fees to cover operational costs, Watson said. 

Palm Springs dipped into reserve funds to cover losses, Strickland said.


Neither airport put a dollar figure on lost revenue compared with what
might have been expected over the past year had the terror attacks not
taken place. 

"Nobody has a handle on one, simple number," Watson said. 

Los Angeles International Airport continued to suffer double-digit
setbacks. Passenger volumes for August were down 14.6 percent. More than
5.6 million travelers flew through LAX in August. So far this year, Los
Angeles International is reporting 16.3 percent fewer fliers than in the
first eight months of 2001, hosting 38.2 million this year compared with
45.6 million in 2001. 

Of the region's major airports, John Wayne Airport, owned and operated
by Orange County, has posted the strongest recovery. The Santa Ana
airport, which reported modest gains since April, handled almost the
exact same number of fliers in August -- 730,000 -- as in the previous
year.


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