State of the Airport: 1M passenger mark closer than forecasted

The blip representing 1 million passengers at Springfield-Branson National Airport is closer on the radar than officials expected.

In the May 25 State of the Airport address, city Aviation Director Brian Weiler said the milestone is within reach this year.

“A couple of years ago I was thinking maybe this would happen in 2020,” he told the room of about 50 gathered at the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce. “I am starting to become more optimistic that this year we may actually have a shot at it. This is the goal.”

The number “1,000,000” was projected on the screen behind him.

The trend line the last five years shows passenger growth to a record 952,703 in 2016 from 731,395 passengers, contributing to annual revenue increases to $178 million from $130 million in the same time period.

“We’re averaging 5 to 6 percent growth a year, which is a little more than double the national average,” Weiler said of the airport’s five-year passenger growth of 30 percent. “The state of the airport is great and it’s getting better.”

Four months into the year, the airport has recorded 275,340 passengers through its gates.

New views
Weiler cited four recent air service announcements for providing the momentum.

“We’ve already served 20,000 more people this year than we did during our record-setting year last year,” Weiler said.

The day of the address also was the first day of nonstop service to Destin/Fort Walton Beach with an inaugural flight departing at 11 a.m.

The recent trends kicked off in November 2015, when the airport began a twice-daily route through American Airlines (Nasdaq: AAL) to Charlotte, North Carolina.

“It’s doing very well,” Weiler said. Weiler said, adding on June 2, the previous 50C aircraft service would be upgraded to a larger, 60-3C aircraft, with a first-class option.
 
“That one change right there is going to increase our seats in this market by 25 percent.”

Though the current agreement for flights to Charlotte ends in November, Weiler has confidence the service will be extended.

The State of the Airport address last year announced Allegiant Air’s seasonal Los Angeles route would begin flying year-round. Weiler noted on two of his recent trips to L.A. both flights were full.

Next up are flights to Houston, Texas, through United Airlines (NYSE: UAL) beginning June 8.

“This one change is going to add 36,000 new seats in our market,” Weiler said. “That’s pretty big.”

General aviation
Weiler also gave word of O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (Nasdaq: ORLY) breaking ground on a new corporate hangar. The national auto parts retailer previously was a subtenant of another hangar at the general aviation terminal.

“You’re subject to restrictions based on who you are leasing it from,” said Mark Merz, vice president of investor relations, financial reporting and planning at O’Reilly Automotive. “With expansion being done at the airport, we took advantage of the opportunity to have a new General Aviation U.S. Customs Facility checkpoint – a perk for business imports and exports.

“In the past, it’s not been used to its fullest extent,” Weiler added.

The checkpoint, he said, opened roughly three weeks ago. It supports the Southwest Missouri Foreign Trade Zone and allows general aviation flights to clear customs without stopping, so it can be especially convenient for business imports and exports, Weiler said.

Another development at the airport involves a new flight-training program at Ozarks Technical Community College.

Called OTC Aviation, the program has drawn interest from over 100 students for only 24 spots, said Cindy Stephens, OTC’s director of innovative career and technical education programs.

“We’ve put folks on the waiting list,” Stephens said of the Aug. 21 launch date.

Organizers say the industry is in need of younger aviators.

“As pilots retire, there aren’t as many people in the pipeline as we need,” Stephens said. “The major airlines could begin stealing from the small carriers.”

Hurdles to a million
One possible factor in the way of hitting 1 million passengers is ticket pricing out of Springfield.

Michael Boyd, an air service industry consultant with Evergreen, Colorado-based Boyd Group International, earlier this year said rates generally are $100-$150 more from Springfield compared with bookings out of Kansas City, St. Louis or Tulsa, Oklahoma.

A search for tickets out of Springfield through Google Flights on May 31 proved his theory. For a round-trip flight to L.A. booked a month in advance, rates ranged between $258 and $554 per ticket from Springfield, compared with $233-$329 from Kansas City.

However, Boyd noted oftentimes passengers decide to fly locally after factoring in additional time, fuel and hotels.

Weiler also addressed airline incidents in recent months, such as the overbooking issue with United Airlines, as talk of a new passenger bill of rights has become prominent.

“I will be the first to admit there have been some well-publicized bumps along the way,” Weiler said. “I’m certainly not going to defend anything that the airlines have done, but what I do think is healthy and good is it is causing a refocus and maybe a revisiting of some policies that will improve customer service.”

Weiler claimed passenger complaints actually have gone down in recent years; airlines have just been subject to media scrutiny.

Regardless of negative factors, Weiler is confident the airport will reach its goal.

“I think as long as we continue to see strong, economic growth like we are, I think the airport’s going to continue to grow,” Weiler said. “I do not see this changing.”


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