Denver International Airport is holding off on a decision to expand but may be well positioned to absorb current turmoil in the airline industry.
A $280 million upgrade of Concourse C would include a 10-gate expansion on the east end of the terminal, new concession areas and restrooms. However, with cutbacks in the number of flights major airlines operate, consolidation and higher ticket and fuel prices, the airport is holding off on making a final decision.
“A decision hasn’t been made,” said DIA spokesman Chuck Cannon. “Some of the airlines haven’t posted their fall schedules. We don’t know what the cutbacks will be.”
But fewer flights and the return of five gates previously leased by bankrupt Frontier Airlines might be a blessing in disguise for DIA, which reported its busiest month ever in July with more than 5 million passengers coming through the airport.
“It (Frontier’s gate return) gives us a little breathing room,” Cannon said, explaining that more open gates lessens the urgent need for expansion.
“We were pretty much gate- constrained,” he said. “We had one or two city gates (not already leased by an airline) on Concourse C.”
DIA is faring better than other major airports, which have been hard hit by cutbacks from Delta and American Airlines. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is closing an entire concourse due to Delta cuts, said Henry H. Harteveldt, vice president and principal analyst for travel at Forrester Research.
“There’s no airport that’s having a pop-the-champagne kind of year. It’s about how much (business) you’re able to keep,” he said. “I think DIA is being very pragmatic right now. The more cost-efficient DIA is an airport, the better chance they have to keep airlines and add new ones.”
Cannon said the airport is always looking to bring in new domestic and international carriers. Southwest Airlines’ expansion in Denver has helped.
“We’re always marketing the airport,” he said. “We think the more competition, the better. That’s always good because it keep fares low. When airlines are competing against each other, they run a more efficient operation.”
Southwest operates 90 flights out of Denver daily, and on Nov. 2, the company will add another 20 flights. It occupies nine gates, three of which it leases from the city.
“It’s been a progressive growth. . . . Denver has been a very successful startup for us,” said David LaPorte, station manager for Southwest at DIA. “We would like to lease all the gates we operate from . . . but from an airport perspective it’s good to keep some under city control.”
Now with open gates on Concourse A, which is primarily occupied by Frontier, DIA has moved airlines with a smaller presence from Concourse C to A, in an effort to accommodate Southwest Airlines’ increasing traffic. Midwest Airlines and Air Tran have moved to gates in Concourse A.
“No gate is empty; every gate is being used,” Cannon said.
Although Harteveldt said the airport’s ability to attract and retain Southwest might be “the best thing that’s happened to DIA,” it must be “concerned about United (Airlines’) well-being.” United occupies just about all of Concourse B.
“The fact that Southwest is stable and growing gives DIA management less to toss and turn about at night,” he said. “What airport operators have learned in the past eight years is that it’s great to have a hub, but you don’t want to be over-reliant on one airline.”
Kimberly S. Johnson: 303-954-1088 or kjohnson@denverpost.com
