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TIA Having Record Year, Despite Slow Day On Sept. 11

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By TED JACKOVICS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 11, 2007

TAMPA - Daily ridership dipped Tuesday at Tampa International Airport on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 hijackings, but the airport continued to report record figures this year, including an 8.1 percent increase in August passengers over a year ago.

On Tuesday's slow travel day, 13,825 passengers flew from Tampa compared with 16,888 outbound reservations that were scheduled Wednesday, said airport spokeswoman Brenda Geoghagan. Officials estimate the number of arriving passengers matches the number departing Tampa.

"Some passengers said 'It's my right to fly,' while others I'm sure just chose not to fly on the anniversary," Geoghagan said.

Overall, the airport continues on a record-setting pace in 2007, with only January showing a decrease compared with the previous year, airport director Louis Miller said in a report Tuesday to the airlines serving Tampa International.

The first 11 months of the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30 have shown a 2.6 percent increase, to 9 million passengers, compared with the year-ago period, Miller said. That's 26.1 percent higher than the 2002-03 fiscal year, the period following the hijackings that resulted in a nationwide air travel slump.

In August, the airport reported 776,464 departing passengers, 58,289 more than August 2006.

"By the end of September, we expect a 3 percent increase over the previous fiscal year, and we are forecasting a 3 percent gain in passengers for the next fiscal year," Miller said.

Reporter Ted Jackovics can be reached at (813) 259-7817 and tjackovics@tampatrib.com

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