LVIA Traffic Drop Results in Worst June in a Decade

Jul. 22--Traffic at Lehigh Valley International Airport fell nearly 9 percent in June to 73,290, the second-lowest number of passengers for the month in 10 years.

So far this year, passenger volume is down 9.2 percent. Airport traffic has been on a downward trend for more than a year, following a turnover of carriers serving the popular Florida market. In 2005, overall traffic fell nearly 18 percent, hitting the second-lowest level in five years.

The largest loss of passengers in June occurred on Northwest Airlines, which saw a 36 percent drop in traffic, while United Express saw the biggest gains, with a 15 percent jump in passenger volume.

Airport officials had hoped 2006 would be a recovery year after the disappointing performance in 2005. Indeed, the airport's top official, George Doughty, said in January he hoped the airport would reach 1 million passengers in 2006. In an interview Friday, he said that won't happen.

"We will continue to see year-over-year declines because we don't have Hooters," said Doughty, the executive director of the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority, which operates LVIA. "We will muddle on through to the end of the year."

Hooters Air flew 8,535 passengers in June 2005. It ceased operating in April, after a successful run flying to Orlando, Fla., and Myrtle Beach, S.C. The airline, which was part of the restaurant chain known for its scantily clad waitresses, cited skyrocketing fuel costs as a major factor in its demise.

The airline left LVIA with about $1 million in unpaid bills, which the airport is trying to collect. Hooters founder and Chairman Bob Brooks was found dead Sunday, but his death is not expected to affect the airport's efforts to recoup the money.

Hooters is one of three discount airlines to come and go at LVIA in the past two years.

While the airport has struggled to retain nonstop service to popular Florida markets, it also has faced steady declines in the past year from the larger carriers, mostly because of bankruptcy.

Northwest has three daily flights to Detroit, down from four a year ago. The airline now flies 50-seat regional jets, rather than 80-seat mainline jets The airline entered bankruptcy protection last year, and Doughty said he does not expect Northwest to increase the number of flights or the size of the planes it flies here until the airline resolves its financial issues.

"They are interested in getting their number of seats up and their frequencies up," Doughty said. "But as long as they are in bankruptcy, they won't be doing too much."

Delta Connection, which also has filed for bankruptcy, reported 10 percent fewer passengers on its daily flights to Cincinnati and Atlanta last month.

United Express flew 16,543 passengers to and from LVIA last month, becoming the No. 2 airline in traffic here. The carrier flies five daily flights to Chicago, up from four a year ago, and four flights to Washington, D.C.

Airport officials are lobbying United to launch daily service to Denver, and to increase the size of the jets it flies here.

Doughty said he is fielding a high number of calls from airlines that are interested in flying out of LVIA at some point. For example, he said he has been in talks with Spirit Airlines, a Miramar, Fla., carrier that flies to the Caribbean and elsewhere. He said the talks are preliminary and ongoing, and no deal has been struck.

The airport also is hopeful Allegiant Air, which began flying from LVIA in December, will either increase the number of departures to Orlando or add flights to St. Petersburg, Fla.

The airport offers 45 daily flights to 12 destinations.

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