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April 18 , 2006
Lehigh Valley International Airport Releases FEBRUARY 2006 Passenger Traffic Report
Lehigh Valley, PA - Airport officials announced today that passenger traffic at the Lehigh Valley International Airport (LVIA) for FEBRUARY 2006 declined 9.18% when compared to FEBRUARY 2005. Year-to-date 2006 passenger traffic has declined 4.78% from the first quarter of 2005. A total of 66,789 passengers utilized LVIA in FEBRUARY 2006 compared to 73,543 in FEBRUARY 2005.
“Since their Chapter 11 filings last year, Northwest and Delta have reduced flight frequencies and available seats,” explained George F. Doughty, Executive Director for the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority. “Even though Lehigh Valley travelers are choosing other airlines such as United, US Airways, and Continental, at this time there just aren’t enough seats to make up the difference. Traffic is expected to increase again as Allegiant doubles its frequencies to eight flights per week in late May and other carriers gradually add seats. Also, another factor in the decline is that the Easter Holiday was in FEBRUARY last year which is a heavy leisure travel time,” Doughty said.
Lehigh Valley International Airport is located near Allentown, Pennsylvania and is served by Air Canada’s Air Georgian, Allegiant, Continental Express, Delta Connection, Northwest, United Express and US Airways Express. LVIA serves a twelve county area with a population base of 3.6 million people. The Airport is easily accessible from communities in eastern Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey areas. The airport is entirely funded by user fees; no property tax dollars are used for the airport’s capital improvements or for its day-to-day operation. For more information on LVIA, visit www.lvia.org
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