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Expect Fewer Flights, Seats, Bargains At TIA

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By TED JACKOVICS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 3, 2008

TAMPA - Expect fewer flights and seats at Tampa International Airport, and that means typically low fares are likely to rise, aviation officials said Thursday.

It could be worse, as it is in Orlando, Sarasota, Jacksonville and Palm Beach, as airlines trim flights and substitute smaller airliners for larger ones to save on fuel costs.

Tampa International will lose 9.9 percent of its seats in October and 10.3 percent in November compared with a year ago, according to Innovata, which produces travel-industry data. Orlando will lose 13.5 percent of its seats in October and 11.3 percent in November.

Tampa has lost nonstop service to four cities because of fuel-price related reductions - Gainesville, Sarasota, Naples and Newburgh, N.Y. - and Orlando has lost 16 domestic and three international nonstop destinations.

"The bottom line is the decades of cheap fares probably are over for Florida," said Rick Seany, chief executive officer of FareCompare.com. "People who used to pay $250 for a flight will be paying $400.

"Even airlines that are flying full planes into Florida are concerned they aren't making money on the flights."

Airfares at Tampa are up 20 percent year-over-year, Seany said. Holiday fares customarily cost 20 percent to 30 percent more.

However, the news is not all doom and gloom.

•Tampa International is adding new service to White Plains, N.Y., in November and Cancun, Mexico, in December.

•Sun Country Airlines will begin Tampa to Minneapolis flights in November.

•AirTran will begin Pittsburgh and Milwaukee flights in November rather than January.

•American Airlines will move its New York flights from LaGuardia Airport to John F. Kennedy International Airport.

In addition, Tampa has built up competition between airlines on many of its 68 nonstop destinations, which enabled it to retain service on nine routes despite some airline withdrawals.

In addition to fewer passenger options and higher fares, the decline in the number of seats and the resulting loss of passengers is taking a toll on airport budgets.

Tampa International collected $154.6 million in revenue for the first 10 months of fiscal 2007-08. That's 79 percent of its annual budgeted revenue of $196 million at a time when it should have reached 83.3 percent of its annual revenue.

"We will continue to monitor declines to determine if budget adjustments would be necessary," said Louis Miller, Tampa International's director.

As for long-range plans, the new North Terminal is scheduled to open in October 2015, when ridership has been predicted to hit 25 million passengers. If ridership remains low, construction can be delayed up to 30 months in advance of completion.

Passenger traffic at Tampa International fell 9.3 percent in August and could be worse in September.

Preliminary figures show parking revenue, which generally tracks ridership, is down 12.5 percent, Miller said.

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

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