- AirTran shows tremendous gain
- Nine airlines increase passenger traffic
- Myrtle Beach Direct Air announces more flights
AirTran had a total of 47,937 passengers in April making it the fifth-busiest airline at Pittsburgh International Airport for the month, accounting for 6.6 percent of the total passengers. Compared to April 2007, AirTran gained a total of 13,704 passengers (47,937/34,233; 40.0 percent increase).
AirTran added additional Florida flights to Ft. Myers, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa and Orlando. The airline has reported growth over each of the past 15 months. “AirTran’s success represents the positive changes we are seeing at Pittsburgh International Airport,” said Allegheny County Airport Authority Chief Executive Director Bradley D. Penrod. “AirTran was our first low cost carrier here and its persistence is paying off. Additionally, other carriers have realized increased passenger numbers.”
Another such airline is Myrtle Beach Direct Air. While its total passenger traffic at Pittsburgh International Airport is modest, Myrtle Beach Direct Air reported a 10.1 percent increase in April (2,013/1,828; 10.1 percent). The airline has just added two flights per week beginning in June.
Pittsburgh’s response to Myrtle Beach Direct Air’s three-day-per-week service has been so positive that they are adding on two more days bringing the service up to 5 times per week. Their fares start at $99 each way between PIT-MYR. They will operate 737-400 and A330 aircraft. Flights can be booked today at www.myrtlebeachdirectair.com or call 1(877)-432-DIRECT (3473).
“Myrtle Beach Direct Air has increased service since starting at the airport in March 2007,” Penrod said. “Although it is a niche market, it is providing an important service to our customers.”
Myrtle Beach Direct Air Schedule
Pittsburgh International Airport to Myrtle Beach through Aug. 31
| Departs PIT |
Arrives in Myrtle Beach |
Days | ||
| 7:15 p.m. | 8:45 p.m. | Thursday, Friday | ||
| 3:30 p.m. | 5:00 p.m. | Saturday | ||
| 3:00 p.m. | 4:30 p.m. | Sunday | ||
| 9:15 a.m. | 10:45 a.m. | Monday |
Pittsburgh International Airport to Myrtle Beach Sept. 1 through Nov. 15
| Departs PIT |
Arrives in Myrtle Beach |
Days | ||
| 7:15 p.m. | 8:45 p.m. | Monday | ||
| 9:15 a.m. | 10:45 a.m. | Thursday | ||
| 7:45 p.m. | 9:15 p.m. | Friday | ||
| 3:30 p.m. | 5:00 p.m. | Saturday | ||
| 5:15 p.m. | 6:45 p.m. | Sunday |
Seven other airlines reported increases in traffic as well. Southwest increased by 8.8 percent (122,357/112,449; 8.8 percent); United had an 11.9 percent gain (65,215/58,297; 11.9 percent); Continental reported a 6.7 percent increase (43,844/41,094; 6.7 percent); Northwest grew by 6.1 percent (42,773/40,312; 6.1 percent); USA 3000 reported the largest growth at 40.3 percent (18,408/13,121; 40.3 percent); Midwest had 2.8 percent increase (7,647/7,440; 2.8 percent); and Air Canada traffic increased by 31.8 percent (3,898/2,957; 31.8 percent)
A total of 726,634 scheduled passengers were enplaned and deplaned at the airport in April 2008, a 15.6 percent decrease compared to April 2007 (726,634 in April 2008/861,243 in April 2007) as those gains were not enough to offset the losses in traffic posted by US Airways (241,952/408,167; 40.7 percent); Delta (76,969/79,461; 3.1 percent); American (35,960/40,113; 10.4 percent) and JetBlue (17,661/21,771; 18.9 percent).
Year-to-date figures show traffic is 10.3 percent lower than the same time period in 2007 (2,786,970/3,105,501; 10.3 percent).
April 2008 Scheduled Traffic at Pittsburgh International Airport
| Airline | Passengers | Percentage of Passengers |
| US Airways | 241,952 | 33.30 |
| Southwest | 122,357 | 16.84 |
| Delta | 76,969 | 10.59 |
| United | 65,215 | 8.97 |
| AirTran | 47,937 | 6.60 |
| Continental | 43,844 | 6.03 |
| Northwest | 42,773 | 5.89 |
| American | 35,960 | 4.95 |
| USA 3000 | 18,408 | 2.53 |
| JetBlue | 17,661 | 2.43 |
| Midwest Airlines | 7,647 | 1.05 |
| Air Canada | 3,898 | 0.54 |
| Myrtle Beach Direct Air | 2,013 | 0.28 |
| Total | 726,634 | 100.0 |
2008 Year-to-Date Scheduled Traffic at Pittsburgh International Airport
| Airline | Passengers | Percentage of Passengers |
| US Airways | 956,727 | 34.33 |
| Southwest | 462,355 | 16.59 |
| Delta | 313,055 | 11.23 |
| United | 237,443 | 8.52 |
| AirTran | 168,530 | 6.05 |
| Continental | 163,973 | 5.88 |
| Northwest | 157,637 | 5.66 |
| American | 137,634 | 4.94 |
| USA 3000 | 76,225 | 2.74 |
| JetBlue | 66,189 | 2.37 |
| Midwest Airlines | 30,500 | 1.09 |
| Air Canada | 12,882 | 0.46 |
| Myrtle Beach Direct Air | 3,820 | 0.14 |
| Total | 2,786,970 | 100.0 |
