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Glitch May Delay Airline Ticket Markup

By PAUL MARKS The Hartford Courant June 15, 2000

WINDSOR LOCKS - It will be months before air travelers using Bradley International Airport will see the $3 add-on fee imposed by the airport on every outbound ticket rise to $4.50, airport administrator Steve Korta says.

Thank a computer glitch for keeping a few extra dollars in your pocket, Korta told the airport's advisory board Wednesday afternoon.

``In something like the Y2K phenomenon,'' airlines are finding their computers are not programmed to account for a half-dollar increment, Korta said.

The airlines are working to find a way to let Bradley raise the so-called ``passenger facility charge'' from $3 to $4.50, as permitted by a federal law passed in March. Most major airports are expected to adopt the higher facility charge.

The add-on charge raises money for certain airport improvements that benefit travelers. Since 1993, it has raised more than $38 million for Bradley, state Department of Transportation officials say.

``In realistic terms, [the markup] probably will not occur until near the end of the year,'' Korta said.

In other matters, DOT aviation marketing specialist Andre Libert reported that recent customer surveys show Bradley is the preferred airport for 74 percent of New Haven County residents, 46 percent of New London County residents and 13.5 percent of Fairfield County residents. The latter figure is a big step up from the negligible 2 percent to 3 percent rate of the early 1990s, Libert said.

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-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), June 15, 2000