Chicago - December 18, 2002 -Options for U.S. air travel have risen this holiday season, according to OAG, the world's leading independent source of flight information.
Compared to December 2001 data, U.S. airports are showing increased scheduled service, particularly those hit hardest after September 11. These findings are part of the first OAG quarterly report on global airline schedules.
According to the report, the number of flights available to and from JFK, LaGuardia and Washington Reagan airports has increased by 21%, 19% and 92%, respectively. Similarly, overall scheduled flights for the 25 U.S. airports analysed in this report are up an average of over 8%, with significant increases in Chicago, Denver, Phoenix, Minneapolis and Memphis.
"This has been a turbulent time for the entire airline industry," commented Ivan Bekkers, vice president, OAG data, Americas. "We haven't reached pre-September 11 levels and the fate of future flight schedules is unknown, but in the short term, consumers can take comfort in knowing that there are more flights available to them."
U.S. AIRPORT FLIGHTS FOR DEC 9-15 2002 COMPARED TO DEC 10-16 2001
| Airport | Frequency Variance | Percentage Variance |
| To/From Chicago O'Hare | 1,600 | 10% |
| To/From Atlanta Hartsfield | 1,090 | 7% |
| To/From Dallas Fort Worth | 1,147 | 9% |
| To/From Denver | 1,595 | 22% |
| To/From Phoenix Sky Harbour | 967 | 12% |
| To/From Detroit Wayne County | 707 | 9% |
| To/From Minneapolis | 889 | 12% |
| To/From Houston George Bush | (36) | -0% |
| To/From Cincinnati Northern Kentucky | 852 | 12% |
| To/From St Louis Lambert | (296) | -4% |
| To/From Philadelphia | 216 | 3% |
| To/From Charlotte | (567) | -8% |
| To/From New York La Guardia | 1,188 | 19% |
| To/From Newark | 136 | 2% |
| To/From Pittsburgh | (1,016) | -14% |
| To/From Boston Logan | 45 | 1% |
| To From/Seattle/Tacoma | 191 | 3% |
| To/From Las Vegas McCarran | (219) | -4% |
| To/From San Francisco | 175 | 3% |
| To/From Miami | 44 | 1% |
| To/From Washington Dulles | (113) | -2% |
| To/From Salt Lake City | 302 | 6% |
| To/From New York JFK | 845 | 21% |
| To/From Washington Ronald Reagan | 2,404 | 92% |
| To/From Chicago Midway | 867 | 24% |
| To/From Orlando | 216 | 5% |
| To/From Baltimore Washington | (300) | -6% |
| To/From Cleveland Hopkins | (131) | -3% |
| To/From Memphis | 662 | 20% |
About the OAG Quarterly Report on Global Airline Schedules
This is the first OAG quarterly report on global airline schedules, developed to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the current state of the air travel industry. The data used in the report is taken from the OAG schedules database, the scale and quality of which is unmatched. Recognized for its accuracy, the OAG database is constantly updated and holds data on more than 900 airlines and over 1.4 million flight sectors.
The report identifies and compares the number of scheduled flights by region, on key routes and to and from major airports, for a particular week from year to year. Future reports are planned for publication in March, June, September and December 2003.
To receive a copy of the full figures for the December 2002 report, including global and low cost sector data, click here, or contact Caroline Kahn at Tel. (312) 822-9443 or e-mail carolinek@slackbarshinger.com