"Michigan airport sees upswing in business, pleasure travel"

Sunday, January 16, 2005

Local airport sees upswing in business, pleasure travel
The Kalamazoo (MI) Gazette


Ridership at the Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International Airport has been
climbing steadily since August, said Peter Battani, deputy administrator for
Kalamazoo County. 

"Everybody was saying that once the Beltline (the recently opened M-6) gets
up and running, there will be this giant sucking sound of people rushing off
to the Grand Rapids airport (Gerald R. Ford International Airport) and we
haven't seen it yet," Battani said. 

Fears had been that Kalamazoo-area travelers would forego the local airport
and opt for Grand Rapids because of the way M-6 cuts time from U.S. 131 east
to the airport. 

In August, the number of people boarding aircraft at the Kalamazoo airport
was 19,400, compared to 18,764 for the same time period in 2003, said Ken
Potts, airport director. By December, that number was at 20,116, compared to
18,637 in December 2003, he said. 

With the exception of the holiday season, Potts said, those traveling
represent a mix of the business and leisure markets. 

Battani said he thinks this steady increase has to do with an aggressive
marketing campaign undertaken by airport officials coupled with a positive
turn in the economy. 

"The airline industry and air travel is a very cyclical thing, and this
(increase in ridership) may be a sign that we are starting to pull out of
the doldrums," Battani said. 

Potts said he thinks the decision by major air carriers like Delta to lower
fares and eliminate restrictions also is a factor. 

"It will help us that Delta has put a cap on fares and eliminated the
Saturday-night stay requirement," Potts said. 

He said he thinks this will help smaller airports like his because there
won't be such a big disparity between fares charged at smaller and larger
airports. 

"There was a $400 difference sometimes in the fares that's not going to be
there anymore," Potts said. "A lot of the major airlines are getting their
costs in line with the low-fare carriers." 

The airport is currently served by American Eagle; Comair; Northwest and two
of its subsidiaries Mesaba and Pinnacle; and United Express 

Battani said airport and county officials are continuing to negotiate with
Delta for nonstop service from Kalamazoo to Atlanta. 

"It would open up that market for us and since Atlanta is a Delta hub we'd
have additional choices for connections," Potts said. He said this would
benefit the business traveler as well as the leisure traveler because the
Kellogg Co. has a plant near Atlanta and other area companies also have
reasons to go down there. 

Potts said he is in discussions with low-fare carriers, but he would not
identify them. 

"You have to court these airlines for a long time and present numbers,"
Potts said. "The chances of Southwest coming here is unlikely, and they
won't go into Grand Rapids either because the markets aren't big enough."


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