Ticket prices drop at CVG
Jason Williams, jwilliams@enquirer.com 8:18 p.m. EST January 8, 2016


Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is no longer one of the most expensive airports in the U.S.

Yes, you read that correctly.

Greater Cincinnati's main commercial airport had an average ticket price of $436 in the second quarter of 2015, according to the most recent federal airfare data released Friday. That dropped CVG all the way down to No. 20 in airfare rankings among the nation's 100 largest airports.

CVG ended a 19-quarter run of being ranked in the top 5 for highest fares, dating to the third quarter of 2010.

Credit the growth of low-cost carriers Allegiant Air and Frontier Airlines coupled with ongoing cuts by Delta Air Lines as the main reasons for the drop in ticket prices.

“We know the key formula for lower fares is providing competitive options for travelers,” airport CEO Candace McGraw said. “Diversifying our carrier base remains our primary strategic objective. Thanks to the support shown by the region for the new carriers and new route options, we are making progress in that effort.”

Fares now have dropped 9 of the last 10 quarters at CVG. The airport's second-quarter 2015 fares were $87 lower than the $523 it cost on average to buy an airline ticket during the same quarter in 2014, a 17 percent year-over-year decline.

Allegiant and Frontier accounted for 17 percent of CVG's passengers in the second quarter of 2015, compared to 4 percent at the same time the previous year. It's widely known in the aviation industry that discount carriers have to account for at least 15 percent of an airport's passengers in order to impact overall average ticket prices.

CVG's average ticket price still was $51 higher than the national average of $385, but the price gap continues to shrink between Cincinnati and the four main commercial airports within a 100-mile radius. Average fares in the second quarter of 2015 at the other nearby airports were:

• Indianapolis – $387

• Columbus – $409

• Dayton – $433

• Louisville – $441

CVG officials expect fares to continue to decline. Delta is expected to continue to pare down its once-bustling Cincinnati hub, and other carriers are showing they're not afraid to compete with the dominant carrier.

This week, American Airlines launched daily nonstop flights to New York City, the first time a carrier has gone head-to-head with Delta on a major business route in several years.

Frontier Airlines announced Thursday that it would start limited weekly nonstop flights to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston and Philadelphia this spring. The new flights to the West Coast cities will offer competition to Delta's service to Los Angeles and San Francisco.

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/20.../78519196/

Flying to Vegas for my Bachelor party in March and Cincinnati was the cheapest city in the area to fly out of. When I went back in 2008 I flew out of Columbus because it was significantly cheaper.

(01-09-2016 11:01 AM)bearcatmark Wrote:  Flying to Vegas for my Bachelor party in March and Cincinnati was the cheapest city in the area to fly out of. When I went back in 2008 I flew out of Columbus because it was significantly cheaper.

The competition phase of capitalism is a wonderful thing.

(01-14-2016 07:00 AM)Not Duane Wrote:  

(01-09-2016 11:01 AM)bearcatmark Wrote:  Flying to Vegas for my Bachelor party in March and Cincinnati was the cheapest city in the area to fly out of. When I went back in 2008 I flew out of Columbus because it was significantly cheaper.

The competition phase of capitalism is a wonderful thing.

Agreed, when there is more competition that's a wonderful thing. That's the worst part of growing business influence in Washington over the last 4 decades is they have bought policies to benefit their corporations and have lessened competition in a lot of areas with those policies.