Many people decided to stay closer to home, even during the summer months.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at 5:13 p.m.
Read more: Local, Economy
SAWYER -- Like the economy, air travel this year has been down.
According to industry experts, by the time consumers add up the costs of airfare, rental cars, hotel, meals, and admission to attractions, many people decided to stay closer to home, even during the summer months.
Passenger numbers for Sawyer International Airport were down 3.4 percent for the first eight months of the year, in comparison to the same time last year.
Delta County Airport in Escanaba also experienced losses, down 12.4 percent.
In Ironwood, the Gogebic County Airport is down almost 29 percent.
However, the Houghton County Memorial Airport was up .5 percent, and Ford Airport in Iron Mountain was up 40.4 percent.
"I think certainly the economy has had a great deal to do with summer travel and overall in 2009," said Keith Kaspari, Sawyer International Airport Manager. "People are just being a little more frugal about their spending habits."
Kaspari says Sawyer is losing some of their passengers to both airports in Green Bay and Appleton due to the frequency of flights, larger aircrafts, and lower fares.
