» RELATED: After Southwest departure, what’s next for Dayton airport?
The airline’s decision took Dayton airport officials by surprise. The airline’s decision to leave Dayton is indicative of a pervasive problem for small airports across the U.S. — major air carrier companies are leaving small and mid-sized airports for larger hub markets.
“It’s obvious that Southwest Airlines has gone through a very dramatic change,” Slaybaugh said in a previous interview. “We’ve been through some pretty tough times with the airline industry in really a short amount of time. I think people forget that in four or five years, we’ve had mergers which were pretty traumatic.”
American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Allegiant Air still operate out of the Dayton airport. Passenger enplanements increased in April compared to the same time last year, with 85,106 travelers flying out of the Dayton airport that month. In April 2016, 84,912 people flew out of the airport.
About the Author