AIR TRAVEL OUT OF LAX ON THE RISE INTERNATIONAL FLIGHTS ARE UP.

Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer

Passenger traffic flowing through Los Angeles International Airport recorded its biggest rebound in more than two decades last year, a sign that business travel and tourism are on the mend, economists said Thursday.

Still far short of traffic levels before the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, LAX served approximately 60.7 million passengers in 2004, a 10.4 percent increase when compared with traffic flow the previous year, according to Los Angeles World Airports. The organization oversees operations at LAX, Ontario International Airport, Van Nuys Airport and Palmdale Regional Airport.

The growth rate at LAX is the largest year-over-year increase since 1978, when deregulation of the airline industry reversed three consecutive years of lower volumes.

In the post-9-11 era, ``a number of businesses are finally willing to spend more in terms of optional travel, and vacationers are not as put off by new security measures,'' said Kevin Klowden, research economist at the Milken Institute in Santa Monica.

A less robust dollar is also bolstering travel rates, with LAX experiencing an influx of flights coming from China and Japan. The number of flights between LAX and China increased by 50 percent in the January 2004-05 period. Meanwhile, international traveler volume was up 12.6 percent in 2004 when compared with 14.6 million passengers in 2003.

``These numbers are looking significantly better when you consider that the international travel market was clobbered by SARs not so long ago,'' said Michael Collins, executive vice president of L.A. Inc., The Convention & Visitors Bureau. ``And with more passengers, cargo follows shortly. And that's a boon to any economy.''

Collins said the airline industry this year is also poised to benefit after recording the second biggest money-losing year ever for U.S. commercial airlines, according to the Associated Press. The worst year was 2002, when industry losses rose to $10 billion. Last year's losses already total $8.6 billion, with US Airways and Alaska Airlines still to report.

``But the economy is coming back, and many of the airlines are offering really great deals,'' said Tom Winfrey, spokesman for Los Angeles World Airports, who also noted his recent visitors from Europe arrived with empty suitcases to take advantage of the dollar's dismal value.

Domestic travel is also perking up, with LAX recording a 9.6 percent increase in passenger volume to 44.2 million last year when compared with 2003. Riding that trend, Bob Hope Airport in Burbank saw a 4 percent increase in passenger traffic volume in 2004 versus 2003. But traffic has been ``fairly steady for at least a decade here,'' said Victor Gill, a spokesman for Bob Hope Airport.

In April, Aloha Airlines will stop serving Bob Hope after offering two flights a day to Hawaii since June 2002. The parent company of Aloha recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the wake of several cutbacks, mostly related to rising fuel costs.

In Aloha's absence, Delta will resume flight service from Bob Hope to Salt Lake City and Atlanta beginning next week following a decade-long hiatus from the airport.

Despite the return of Delta at Bob Hope, Milken economist Klowden said the airlines still have a way to go before their financial statements bounce back. ``They have to improve their cost-per-mile ratios. And until then, the good news is mostly for travelers out there.''

Evan Pondel, [phone]

evan.pondel(at)dailynews.com

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AIR TRAVEL ON THE MEND

SOURCE: Los Angeles World Airports

Gregg Miller/Staff Artist