Cheaper Fares in Tulsa
A columnist for a Springfield paper writes today about the frustration of finding cheaper flights in Tulsa. I felt his pain, but I also got a good chuckle. His misperceptions about the airline business are understandable and commonplace.
In trying to understand why low-cost airline ExpressJet doesn't serve Springfield, he writes, “I saw the airport in Albuquerque and I saw the airport in Tulsa. I wasn’t impressed. They weren't that much bigger than the Springfield-Branson National Airport.”
That’s not quite right. Here’s how the 2006 total passenger numbers stack up:
- Albuquerque: 6,346,159
- Tulsa: 3,163,475
- Springfield-Branson: 862,611
The airports in Albuquerque and Tulsa are much, much bigger than Springfield-Branson. That’s why those airports have lured ExpressJet.
It’s also worth noting that ExpressJet is not a discount carrier running in the same league as Southwest, JetBlue, AirTran, etc. It’s a regional jet company that flys for other airlines. In April it started flying under its own name at cut rate prices. This news story from Reuters sums it up well. It will be interesting to see if the airline can hold on.
Kent
6 Comments
Reader Comments (6)
What...no facts at the Newspaper...I am shocked...thanlks for the needed perspective
The comment about the Tulsa and Albuquerque airports wasn't about passenger size. It was about the relative size of the terminals. It was also written in an opinion column. The context, I think, would show that the comment was written somewhat in jest and that it intends toshow that Springfield compares favorably in some ways to those larger airports. Obviously the Tulsa and Albuquerque airports are bigger than Springfield.
Even though Tulsa is larger and has cheaper air fares, I think Springfield's airport looks nicer, clearner and more modern.
Okay, Tulsa and Alburquerque have more emplaned passengers thus cheaper rates.
I frequently fly to west coast. As usual...I can fly out of JOPLIN or FAYETTEVILLE cheaper than Springfield. I usually purchase on cheaptickets.com.
At present, for a fall trip, I can fly out of either JLN or XNA for $343.00 roundtrip. It costs $510.00 out of Springfield.
Why can they have competitive pricing? Are their markets larger too?
In response to Brian, the Albuquerque and Tulsa airports have much bigger terminals and concourses than SGF, stop kidding yourself.
Some people don't think too much, they drive to Tulsa (2hrs), KC (3.5hrs) or even Fayetteville (1.5hrs)to go to the West Coast LA etc. Then when they get to LA or one of the other area airports they have to fight another 3 hours of traffic. I usually fly out of Springfield to Vegas and then take the 2 hour drive into Southern Cal from the east which is much quicker.
Its much cheaper and there is alot less time wasted, and I don't have that drive back to Springfield. I really hope we get an Allegiant Phoenix flight and Ft. Lauderdale for Cruises or even transfers on Southwest. Speaking of, I often take Allegiant to Vegas and then use Southwest to Portland or whatever city is my final destination. Usually about the same as flying on Southwest all the way from KC or St.Louis
I found flying out of springfield is very high compared to tulsa. You can save about 400.00 to fly from tulsa So its worth the 2 hr drive to save that much