Travel Tips

Travel Tip: Airlines Cut Back Service Between Smaller U.S. Airports

Locations in this article:  San Diego, CA

AirportA growing number of small and midsize U.S. cities are facing a crisis: air service.

According to The U.S. Travel Association, 60 percent of U.S. airports have lost connectivity in the last decade.

Airlines are concentrating their operations at fewer hubs.

Cities such as Memphis, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Raleigh-Durham—just to name a few—have seen cuts in the number of flights and destination choices.

In addition, 30 small airports in the U.S. have lost air service entirely.

Other airports, such as Colorado Springs, saw its traffic drop 50 percent—all due to the number of flights operating to and from the airport.

Given the law of supply and demand, that usually means higher airfares from these airports.

One ray of hope: long-haul international nonstop flights to these airports are growing.

Why? These airports have the space and are giving these airlines financial incentives to fly there.

Translation: it may be easier—and perhaps less expensive—to fly from San Diego to Europe than to go from San Diego to Cleveland.

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