01-27-2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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2008 Activity at Port Columbus, Rickenbacker Down From 2007

COLUMBUS – Thanks to a record first quarter, Port Columbus reported its second busiest year in 2008 despite a significant drop in passengers after the first quarter.

A little over 6.9 million passengers used Port Columbus in 2008, making it the second busiest year in the airport’s history behind the 7.7 million passengers who used the airport in 2007.

“Skybus passengers resulted in abnormally high traffic figures for 2007,” explained David Whitaker, Vice President of Business Development & Communications. “As a result, while 2008 passenger numbers were significantly lower than 2007, when you look at a longer history of passenger traffic you see that Port Columbus fared reasonably well in 2008.”

Below is a chart outlining the top five years of passenger activity at Port Columbus:

2007-7,719,340

2008-6,910,045

2000-6,882,485

2002-6,741,353

2006-6,733,990

As a result of a sluggish national economy, passenger numbers in the latter months of 2008 often dipped 15 to 20 percent compared to the previous year. In December Port Columbus served 518,181 passengers which is an 18.4 percent drop compared to December 2007. Year-end numbers for 2008 equated to a 10.5 percent drop compared to 2007.

“We expect that the decline in passenger numbers experienced during the latter part of 2008 will continue into 2009,” said Whitaker.

Port Columbus provides 152 daily departures to 33 airports. The 11 air carriers at Port Columbus include Apple Vacations, Air Canada Jazz, AirTran, American, Continental, Delta, Midwest Connect, Northwest, Southwest, United, US Airways and the regional affiliates associated with many of these major airlines.

Rickenbacker International Airport, a multi-modal cargo airport that features an impressive network of freight forwarders and cargo airlines, reported that nearly 200 million pounds of cargo moved through the airport in 2008, a nine percent drop compared to 2007. This decrease is attributed to sluggish national and international economies that had a dampening effect on consumer demand and, therefore, movement of cargo. Below is a recap of cargo tonnage over the last five years:

2008-199,814,163

2007-220,529,131

2006-250,748,061

2005-248,917,975

2004-215,926,925

“The decline in cargo activity is also expected to negatively impact 2009,” said Whitaker.

For additional information, visit www.ColumbusAirports.com or contact Angie Tabor, Manager of Communications, at (614) 239-4081.

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