Nick K

Today's paper:

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060911/NEWS/609110590/1008/NEWS02

While the head of Allegiant Air said the airline pulled out of Worcester because the local market failed to support its service at a profitable level, City Manager Michael V. O’Brien has provided the City Council with a report disputing that contention. Mr. O’Brien cited statistics derived from reports generated by Swissport, the ground handler for Allegiant Air. He said Allegiant had strong passenger numbers that were consistently increasing, even over the traditionally slower summer months. He said passenger loads on flights in mid-June to mid-August were in high-80-percent to mid-90-percent range for inbound and outbound flights. He said passenger loads began to decline after Allegiant’s announcement on Aug. 22 that it was terminating its service here Sept. 3. “The statistics clearly show that Worcester and Worcester County did a tremendous job supporting Allegiant Air and its service at Worcester Regional Airport during its eight months of operation, evidenced by the broad community and media support and substantiated by passenger load factors that were strong, and more significantly, trending upward,” Mr. O’Brien said.