DATE: Sunday, September 7, 1997             TAG: 9709050791

SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D10  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: HAMPTON ROADS ALMANAC '97

SOURCE: BY DEBBIE MESSINA, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   68 lines

TOURISM FOR NORFOLK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, SKIES LOOK BRIGHT

Norfolk International Airport is having its best year since 1994 when Continental Airlines' low-fare, high-frequency service created a temporary high in local air travel.

From January 1997 to May 1997, passenger activity grew 4.39 percent, to 1.091 million from 1.045 million.

Only 1994 surpassed these numbers when the now-defunct CALite was introduced. Other low-fare and express services have surfaced, but they have not drawn the huge numbers of CALite.

One constant is US Airways' command of the local market share. US Airways for years has been the dominant carrier at Norfolk International. It is followed by Delta, United, Continental and TWA.

Here's an analysis of passenger traffic at the Norfolk airport by airline for the first five months of 1997. The percentage change is compared with the same period in 1996. The market share covers January through May 1997.

(The market share figures add up to more than 100 percent because the they were rounded up to two decimals places, said Charles W. Braden, airport market development director.)

Air South: 27,170 passengers, no service last year. Market share - 2.49 percent. (Air South suspended all flights in late August and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.)

Air Tran: 19,401 passengers, down 13.56 percent. Market share - 1.78 percent.

American: 69,952 passengers, down 2.27 percent. Market share - 6.41 percent.

Continental: 56,948 passengers, down 23.09 percent. Market share - 5.22 percent.

Continental Express: 28,747 passengers, up 84.31 percent. Market share - 2.63 percent.

Delta: 233,439 passengers, up 12.22 percent. Market share - 21.39 percent.

Delta Connection (Comair): 5,439 passengers, down 33.71 percent. Market share - 0.50 percent.

Midway Connection: 6,728 passengers, up 44.19 percent. Market share - 0.62 percent.

Northwest: 60,555 passengers, down 9.73 percent. Market share - 5.55 percent.

TWA: 51,874 passengers, up 6.41 percent. Market share - 4.75 percent.

TWA Express: 19,741 passengers, up 10.26 percent. Market share - 1.81 percent.

United: 64,068 passengers, down 6.28 percent. Market share - 5.87 percent.

United Express: 26,760 passengers, down 5.51 percent. Market share - 2.45 percent.

US Airways: 359,736 passengers, up 4.95 percent. Market share - 32.96 percent.

US Airways Express: 60,988 passengers, up 4.61 percent. Market share - 5.59 percent.

Newport News-Williamsburg International Airport does not release statistics on individual airlines.

Three airlines service Newport News-Williamsburg. They are ValuJet, US Airways Express and United Express. ValuJet has about 30 percent of the market.

For the first six months of 1997, there were 187,481 passengers, a 16.24 percent drop from the first six months of 1996. The decline can be attributed to last year's grounding of ValuJet after a fatal crash, and the airline's slow rebuilding to previous levels of service. MEMO: BUSINESS ALMANAC

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