Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Activity Rebounds a Bit

Airport Activity Rebounds a Bit
Minneapolis Star Tribune, MN

Published February 16, 2004 


A rebound in air traffic last year produced the most
takeoffs and landings at Minneapolis-St. Paul
International Airport since the busy days of 2000. And
total passengers were the most since 2001.

Surges by charter and smaller regional airlines more
than offset a slight drop by Northwest Airlines and
its major competitors. But because regional carriers
Pinnacle and Mesaba are linked to Northwest, their
numbers reflect the larger airline's decision to
deploy more smaller planes.

Year-end figures from the Metropolitan Airports
Commission show that the Lindbergh and Humphrey
terminals handled 33.2 million passengers, 1.75
percent more than in 2002.

The number of takeoffs and landings increased 0.53
percent from 507,669 to 510,382.

In the peak year of 2000, passengers totaled 36.7
million, and takeoffs and landings totaled 523,170.
But the combination of economic decline and fallout
from the 2001 terrorist attacks reduced air travel,
putting many airlines in the red.

Tim Anderson, deputy executive director of the
Metropolitan Airports Commission, said the rebound "is
nice to see," although he noted that airlines'
financial health hinges not only on the number of
passengers but on the fares they pay. He predicted
that "we'll see more, not less" of efforts by
Northwest to make regional airlines and their smaller
planes a bigger part of the mix at Minneapolis-St.
Paul.

For now, the major carriers dominate: About 86 percent
of passengers at the two terminals flew on the major
airlines. But their customer totals at Minneapolis-St.
Paul dropped 0.36 percent from 2002.

Major carriers accounted for 66 percent of takeoffs
and landings last year, down from 68 percent in 2002.

Charter airlines' passenger totals rose 68 percent,
and their takeoffs and landings rose 120 percent. The
figures are magnified by the relatively small base
from the previous year.

Noting this winter's onslaught of snow, Anderson said
that charter business could continue gaining. "It
makes me want to go someplace," he said.

Regional airlines' passenger totals rose 18 percent,
and their takeoffs and landings climbed 10 percent.

The number of passengers and flights has a ripple
effect in areas such as parking and concessions
revenue, employment and jet noise around the airport.


 Do you have an opinion about this story?
Share it with other readers in our CAA Discussion Forums

http://www.californiaaviation.org/dc/dcboard.php

*****************************************