Editor’s note: This story is a component of The Compass Report. The quarterly Compass Report is managed by The City Wire and presented by Fort Smith-based Benefit Bank. Other supporting sponsors of The Compass Report are Cox Communications and the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce.
The Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) is the only one of Arkansas’ three largest commercial airports to report positive year-to-date enplanements.
For the first six months of 2013, enplanements are up more than 3% at XNA, and down almost 4% at the Fort Smith Regional Airport. For the first five months of 2013, enplanements at the Bill & Hillary Clinton Airport (Little Rock National Airport) are also down almost 4%. (As of July 11, officials at the airport did not have June numbers.)
XNAACTIVITY
Travelers flying out of XNA during June totaled 56,889, up 1.94% compared to the 55,777 during June 2012. The airport has more than 13 service connections.
For the first six months of the year, XNA enplanements total 285,183, up 3.18% compared to the same period in 2012. Traffic gains are trending positive at the airport. Enplanements were up 2.42% during the first quarter of 2013 compared to the 2012 period.
Enplanements could tick higher, American Airlines is adding non-stop flights from Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport to Los Angeles International Airport in Southern California starting Aug. 27.
Enplanements at XNA totaled 565,045 during 2012, up just 0.4% compared to 2011. Although slight, the gain prevented XNA from posting two-consecutive years of enplanement declines.
XNA’s first full year of traffic was 1999, and the airport posted eight consecutive years of enplanement gains before seeing a decline in 2008. It reached a peak of 598,886 in 2007.
Chicago-based Fitch Ratings recently affirmed its “BBB” rating on $33.4 million in bonds, and provided a a rating outlook of “Stable.” The Fitch report indicated the airport’s cost per enplaned rate of $5.92 is “comparatively low” among similar airports. Also, the report said non-airline revenue – 88% of operating revenue in 2012 – is expected to grow with increase concession revenue from the new airport concourse.
However, Fitch noted the airport’s reliance on a few large corporations does come with a potential downside.
“The air trade area's established business profile with large corporate presence (i.e. Walmart and Tyson Foods) is a credit strength, but there is potential for on-going economic sensitivity of these industries that may result in some volatility in enplanement activity,” noted Ashley Ulrich, the primary analyst for Fitch’s XNA report.
FORT SMITH TRAFFIC
The Fort Smith Regional Airport, which is served by flights from Memphis and Dallas-Fort Worth, posted June enplanements of 7,876, down 1.4% compared to June 2012.
For the first six months of 2013, enplanements at the airport total 42,041, down 3.9% compared to the same period in 2012. The rate of decline is improving. Enplanements during the first quarter were down 7.4% compared to the same period in 2012.
Enplanements at the Fort Smith Regional Airport totaled 86,653 during 2012, just ahead of the 86,234 in 2011, and marking three consecutive years of enplanement gains.
American Airlines enplanements out of Fort Smith during the first half of 2013 total 24,574, down 4.4% compared to the same period in 2012. Delta enplanements during the first half of 2013 total 17,467, down 3.35% compared to the same period of 2012.
LITTLE ROCK
Enplanements at the Bill & Hillary Clinton Airport (Little Rock National Airport), totaled 445,896 during the the first five months of 2013, down 3.92% compared to the 2012 quarter. May 2013 enplanements totaled 104,483, down 4.98% compared to May 2012.
Enplanements in 2012 totaled 1.147 million, up 4.07% compared to 2011. The 2012 numbers also ended five consecutive years of enplanement declines at Arkansas’ largest commercial field.