Bringing More Passengers To Mobile Regional

Florida Alabama Airport authority members meet with Mobile area business leaders.

by Steve Alexander

Published: Thu, January 08, 2009 - 9:37 pm CST

Do you fly out of Mobile Regional Airport?
If not, why?
That's what members of the Mobile Airport Authority want to find out.
They met with community and business leaders Thursday afternoon to talk about air service and economic growth.
Joe Gerard is the owner of Coastal Ford and said he and his co-workers do plenty of flying.
He said, "I'm concerned about the disparity in the ticket pricing between Mobile and Pensacola and even Gulfport. We find ourselves more often than not flying in and out of Pensacola or Gulfport only because of the price structure."
Bob Bender, the co-owner of Springdale Travel, said, "On the average, Pensacola is about $70 cheaper."
The Executive Director of the Mobile Airport Authority, Bill Sisson, said he knows low fares are the key to attracting passengers, and he's doing research to find out how to get people to Mobile rather than Pensacola and Gulfport.
Sisson said, "If we can capture some of that (business) back, we can convince the airlines that they need to offer better service at lower fares."
He said more people flying out of Mobile mean more flights and lower fares.
But business people also talked about other services at the airport, like getting to and from the terminal and the parking lot.
Carol Baehr, a certified financial planner, said, "I love the fact that Bill Sisson said we're going to re-pave the parking lot because, if you're a single traveller and you're dragging your bag to the front, you feel like the wheels are about to rattle off."
Mike Lee with Page & Jones freight logistics said, "The scheduling to me is more important than the pricing there."
But Bender said its important for people to fly out of Mobile Regional Airport.
He said, "You start losing air service, you start losing companies. So when a company is looking at Mobile to re-locate, they're looking at air service just like they're looking at school systems."

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BamaBob Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 8:33 pm

It is all about the money! It is cheaper to rent a car and drive to Pensacola, or New Orleans. Why?

myopinion Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 7:41 pm

Lower the fares! Forget paving the parking lot! Just fix the holes!

KxVicious Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 12:13 pm

Cameo, MOB isn’t an international airport, so you’re never going to see an exhange.

KxVicious Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 12:12 pm

I fly out of New Orleans because it costs me $30 in gasoline, but I save $200 on airfare!

bikertod Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 10:09 am

Is the Mobile Airport Authority really that ignorant?They really don’t know why people don’t fly out of Mobile.And they are running the airport.Go figure.

cameo Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 9:30 am

I fly to and from other countries often, having an exchange bank at the Mobile airport would help too.

RNuts Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 8:33 am

The airlines should lower the price first. I WILL NOT PAY EXTRA NOW in the hopes that the airline will reduce fares later. They won’t. I fly out of P’Cola and have no problems with the drive.

If Airtran were to come back to Mobile, I would change my mind.

SaintsFan Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 7:41 am

I flew three times last year from Gulfport simply because of PRICE. Mobile is the most expensive airport in my area. I live in Mobile but price causes me to go elsewhere for my flights. Until the prices get competitive I will choose another airport over Mobile.

opavince Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 6:39 am

We travel to Mobile area frequently, but use Gulfport or Pensacola due to price of tickets. Price for car rental to get into Mobile is still necesssary, but we would still have to rent a vehicle in Mobile. In addition, there are Mobile County travelers to OHIO who leave the area to use other airports for the same reasons. Lower the ticket prices to be competitive and the travelers into Mobile will increase dramatically!

mustuknow Says:

Fri, Jan 09, 2009 at 3:08 am

Frankly the money being wasted on determining why passengers are down out of Mobile would be better spent on the airport itself or advertising. I know when I book flights for myself or my boss I seach for the cheapest flight with the fewest plance changes and layovers as possible.

My boss is a millionaire and can afford to fly out of where ever but it always comes down to who has the cheapest fare. It does not bother him to drive an hour to save $300 give or take.

Mobile needs some new leadership first and foremost, then possibly some of the problems that Mobile is encountering can be corrected.

JMO