Bailis Bell, Director of Airports for the City of Wichita, announced to the board a 7% increase in passenger volume out of Mid-Continent Airport from 2002 to 2003. That increase marks a steady climb in passenger volume since 2001, when Fair Fares was first initiated.

"To put that into perspective, air travel is up nationally by 2%," Bell said. "We far exceeded that national average here in Wichita. That increase is proof that our Fair Fares campaign is working, and people are choosing to fly Mid-Continent Airport."

In 2003, 1,431,610 passengers flew out of Wichita, surpassing the record that was set back in 1996 when passenger traffic was at 1,427,542. The increase in 1996 was attributed to the presence of Vanguard Airlines. Overall, since the inception of Fair Fares back in 2001, passenger volume has jumped nearly 27%.

While passenger traffic has continued to rise since the inception of Fair Fares two years ago, ticket prices have steadily fallen. The average one-way fare out of Mid-Continent Airport in 2003 was $137, compared with $182 in 2002 and $216 in 2001. In total, conservative estimates state that passengers have saved $85 million on airfares since low-cost airlines AirTran Airways, Frontier JetExpress and Allegiant Air entered the market.

The largest airport in the State of Kansas, Wichita Mid-Continent Airport offers 53 departures on nine airlines daily and provides nonstop service to 11 major cities within the United States.

Facts at a glance:

Passenger volume:

• 2003: 1,431,610 passengers
• 2002: 1,337,270 passengers
• 2001: 1,129,381 passengers
• 1996: 1,427,542 passengers (previous record)

Average one-way fares:

• 2003: $137
• 2002: $182
• 2001: $216

December passenger volume:

• 2003: 131,431 passengers
• 2002: 135,090 passengers

For full details of activity reports and the history from year to year, go to http://www.flywichita.com/statistics.asp.