Analysis of Airline Ticket Prices at Small Airports

Author Information

Siu Kwan WongFollow

Authors' Class Standing

Siu Kwan (Fiona) Wong, Senior

Lead Presenter's Name

Siu Kwan (Fiona) Wong

Faculty Mentor Name

Chunyan Yu

Abstract

Many small airports in the United States suffer from “passenger leakage”, which refers to the fact that passengers bypass the nearest airport and choose to fly out of a competing airport. One of the reasons often cited for “passenger leakage” is higher airfares that in turn are generally attributed to lack of competition because of fewer airlines at these small airports. However, a cursory look at a recent average airfare survey shows that Huntsville had the highest average airfare among the top 100 US airports, and Atlantic City had the lowest. Both airports are classified as small hub by FAA. How do you explain the lowest fare at Atlantic City versus the high fares at Huntsville? This study will examine factors that potentially affect airfares at small airports, including types and number of airlines, air services at competing airports, mix of passengers, and etc.

Location

Center for Faith & Spirituality

Start Date

9-4-2014 1:00 PM

Share

COinS
 
Apr 9th, 1:00 PM

Analysis of Airline Ticket Prices at Small Airports

Center for Faith & Spirituality

Many small airports in the United States suffer from “passenger leakage”, which refers to the fact that passengers bypass the nearest airport and choose to fly out of a competing airport. One of the reasons often cited for “passenger leakage” is higher airfares that in turn are generally attributed to lack of competition because of fewer airlines at these small airports. However, a cursory look at a recent average airfare survey shows that Huntsville had the highest average airfare among the top 100 US airports, and Atlantic City had the lowest. Both airports are classified as small hub by FAA. How do you explain the lowest fare at Atlantic City versus the high fares at Huntsville? This study will examine factors that potentially affect airfares at small airports, including types and number of airlines, air services at competing airports, mix of passengers, and etc.