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Y2K concerns put crimp on passenger volume in January at SW Florida International

Wednesday, February 23, 2000

By Daily News staff

FORT MYERS - Passenger traffic volume fell 3.5 percent at Southwest Florida International Airport in January as many travelers expressed concerns over possible Y2K-related glitches.

According to figures released Tuesday by the Lee County Port Authority, a total of 466,953 people passed through the airport last month. That was down from the record 483,370 travelers reported during January 1999.

Airport officials blamed the decline on growing public wariness about traveling in late December and early January when widespread computer problems were predicted relating to the date rollover to the year 2000.

Weather was another contributing factor, according to Susan M. Sanders, director of aviation marketing development for the Lee County Port Authority.

"The terrible weather in Atlanta, especially during Super Bowl weekend, and snowstorms in the Northeast caused flight cancellations that affected our January passenger count."

Despite the decline in passenger traffic, air freight shipping surged ahead by 13.3 percent over the same month last year. During the month, a record 2.79 million pounds of air cargo passed through the airport.

Southwest Florida International Airport opened in May 1983 and is served by 12 major domestic carriers as well as a handful of charter and commuter airlines. Of those, Delta Air Lines carried the most passengers, followed by USAirways, Northwest and Continental. The largest commuter airline last month was American Eagle. LINK

Copyright ) 2000 Naples Daily News. All rights reserved.

-- Dee (T1Colt556@aol.com), February 23, 2000