Local airport traffic up

While the 3.2% increase from the same month a year earlier represented just 50 passengers, the jump did interrupt a downward trend.

Passenger traffic at the regional airport had been declining at annual rate of about 10% from 1995 levels, the department reported. According to D.O.A. figures, Palmdale's passenger head count through the first 10 months of this year was 15,571, off 1,832 from last year's same period count of 17,413.

The primary reason for the year-to-year drop was the termination of local service by Skywest Airlines, according to Nancy Niles, Department of Airports spokeswoman.

The reason for the increase in October passenger traffic isn't as easy to pinpoint. Brandon Eaton, Palmdale station manager for United Express, could only credit the bump in monthly traffic to some kind of fluke.

He said passenger traffic through Palmdale has been consistent and he doesn't see any gradual increases in business for the city's only commercial passenger airline.

In fact, Eaton is asking his bosses at United Airlines if a new fare structure could be offered to give the airline a significant boost in ridership here.

Fares have climbed substantially - even government fares have doubled - and people who could be flying to and from Los Angeles are driving again, Eaton said.

Roundtrip fares to Los Angeles International Airport can be as low as $30 to $50 for passengers connecting to United Airlines flights to final destinations worldwide.

But for people connecting in Los Angeles to another airline's flights, the roundtrip from Palmdale could cost as much as $300.

September 1994 figures showed there is a base of passenger business to be tapped in Palmdale, but the fares have to be more affordable, Eaton said. There were 3,000 people flying that month, compared with an average month of about 1,500 passengers, he said.

There was a big bump in local airline interest in January 1994 - the month the Northridge Earthquake caused long delays in getting to and from Los Angeles and caused commuters to seek rail and aircraft alternatives to commuting by car.

Currently, passenger business fills just 25% of available seats to and from Palmdale, Eaton said. Some cargo and air freight also is occasionally flown on United Express planes, he added.

Eaton said he believes that if fares could be reduced, the carrier could fill at least half the seats on its Antelope Valley flights.