source http://www.cincinnati .com
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport has resumed its No. 1 ranking of having the nation’s highest ticket prices – showing new low-cost airlines have not had an impact on lowering overall fares.
CVG had an average roundtrip ticket price of $514 during the first quarter this year, according to new federal transportation data released Tuesday. That’s up from $510 in the fourth quarter of 2013, when CVG had the second-highest average ticket price among the 100 largest airports in the U.S.
But airport officials remain optimistic that CVG will start to drop in the federal airfare rankings later this year.
“CVG’s metrics are going in the right direction and progress is being made,” airport CEO Candace McGraw said. “Our local passenger volumes have increased 15 of the last 16 months. Within the last year, we have been successful in recruiting two low-cost carriers that have grown service quickly after entering this market.”
McGraw added: “While the airport does not set airfares, we are certain that increased competition will result in lower fares.”
CVG ‘can’t give up’ on more international flights
The airlines set ticket prices, not the airports. Airfares listed in the federal data do not reflect corporate discounts that airlines offer major companies. In Cincinnati, for example, Kroger, Procter & Gamble and other big companies have deals with Delta, which can offer up to a 35 percent discount off the published ticket price.
CVG, plagued for years by high fares, has started to see its fortunes change after Delta Air Lines’ yearslong monopoly – despite the federal data. Discount carriers Frontier Airlines and Allegiant Air have arrived at CVG in the past year, adding incremental flights.
Allegiant didn’t begin its limited weekly vacation flights until February, and it has announced a major expansion later this year. Frontier also started new flights to the Philadelphia area in February, and it has announced adding more flights later this year.
Allegiant Air adds 11 new flights at CVG
CVG had ranked No. 2 for the previous six consecutive quarters. It had an average fare of $527 in the first quarter of 2013.
Here were the average ticket prices and rankings for CVG’s regional competitors during the first quarter this year: Louisville ($407, 32nd), Columbus ($406, 35th), Indianapolis ($397, 39th) and Dayton ($389, 50th). Lexington no longer is considered among the nation’s 100 largest airports, but its average fare was $400.
Huntsville had been on a streak of holding the top spot in highest-airfare rankings, but it no longer is considered among the nation’s 100 largest airports. That most likely contributed to CVG moving into the top spot.
Also in the first quarter, Washington Dulles International Airport had the nation’s second-highest average ticket price at $499. Some 81 of the top 100 airports experienced an increase in fares during the quarter. Orlando Sanford International Airport had the lowest average airfare of $119. •
