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Cutbacks at Northwest Fla. Airports
 Ticket counter at Northwest Florida Regional Airport |
Fuel hikes, airline cutbacks and a weak economy are crimping plans at major northwest Florida airports. Panama City, Pensacola and Tallahassee face service cutbacks from airlines that amount to between 10% and 30% of the total number of seats coming in and out of the airports, according to Official Airline Guide and airport estimates. Overall, Florida will see a 10% decrease. “Things aren’t going to improve drastically or quickly,’’ says Pensacola airport director Frank Miller.
Around northwest Florida airports:
- Tallahassee Regional Airport: Delta Air Lines eliminated non-stop service to three Florida cities on Oct. 1. Assistant director of aviation Phil Inglese doesn’t hedge when asked how he expects to reverse downturns in traffic and airline service. “I can’t,” he says. “It’s fuel, fuel, fuel; that’s what’s driving everything — the economy and the operation of the airlines.’’ Tallahassee recently spent $20 million on airport-terminal upgrades.
- Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional: The region’s busiest airport is postponing a $30-million chunk of its roughly $100-million capital plan, while proceeding with a $71-million terminal expansion and rental car facility.
- Panama City-Bay County International Airport: While the Panama City-Bay County airport is the region’s least-trafficked, its reincarnation at a virgin West Bay site, scheduled for completion in 2010, appears certain to shift its standing. “We’ve got a demand for aviation we’re not able to meet today,’’ says executive director Randy Curtis. The new site also will offer 1,400 adjacent acres for economic growth and development.
- Northwest Florida Regional Airport in Okaloosa County: This is the region’s only airport escaping airline cutbacks to date and the only one in Florida forecast to have an increase, 3.8%, in seat capacity. It’s in midconstruction on a $14-million rental car facility.
While most airports are vying to attract airlines, especially low-cost carriers such as Southwest, notes Pensacola’s Miller, “You have to show the airlines how it makes economic sense for them to do that.”
| Airport Outlook | ||
| Airport |
2007 Passengers | 1-Yr. Change (Aug. ’08) |
| Panama City-Bay County | 337,738 |
+2.28% |
| Northwest Florida (Okaloosa) | 811,345 |
+1.5% |
| Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional |
1,669,950 |
-1.8% |
| Tallahassee Regional | 921,816 | -8.4% |
| Source: Airports | ||
 Construction on the Panama City-Bay County International Airport |
