April 2004 passenger volumes at Mid-Continent Airport increased 18% over April 2003. Airport officials attribute much of this growth to the Fair Fares effort, which continues to save travelers millions of dollars in airfares and has been called by State legislators as "one of the best economic development efforts" implemented by the City of Wichita and Airport officials.
The most significant effort to lower airfares has been with the arrival of AirTran Airways. One of the most sought after low fare carriers in the nation, AirTran Airways first arrived in May of 2002. On Tuesday, May 11, at the two-year anniversary since the carrier first arrived, the Wichita City Council will review an item to renew the contract with AirTran for another year.
"This is fantastic news for Mid-Continent, Wichita and the State of Kansas," said Bailis Bell, Director of Airports. "The low fares through Mid-Continent have enticed travelers such as the WIBC conventioneers to use our airport rather than travel through out of state airports. We are tremendously thrilled with the continuing increases," he said.
For April 2004, passenger count at Mid-Continent Airport was at 118,153, which is 17.73% above April last year with 100,362 passengers. The year to date for 2004 totals had 452,940 passengers flying through Mid-Continent while year to date for 2003 had 410,961 passengers. This accounts for 10.21% increase. For full details of activity reports and the history from year to year, go to www.flywichita.com and click on "Statistics."
About Fair Fares: Fair Fares is a public/private partnership that began in December 2001 with the intent to bring low-cost carriers to Mid-Continent Airport, Kansas’ largest commercial airfield. In November 2003, the initiative turned its focus toward stabilizing and expanding the low-cost advantage at Mid-Continent and extending Fair Fares service.
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