Augusta Regional Airport officials have said for years that low fares have fueled its climb in passengers. In 2009, 68,000 more people flew out of Augusta than three years before.
Columbia and Atlanta top the list of nemesis airports for Augusta, siphoning away the most potential passengers.
"We've seen more folks from Columbia starting to come down and use our airport," said marketing director Diane Johnston. "We love to see other communities coming to ours and spending their money here."
The reversal of fortune is partly attributable to the low fares. In an Augusta Chronicle sampling, Augusta ranged from $44 to $313 cheaper than Columbia.
"The airlines have offered some good fares out of here lately. I think that is certainly one of the reasons that people are using us. Reliability has gotten so much better, too, for the last couple of years," Johnston said.
In comparing fares for six destinations over Mother's Day weekend, Augusta was a close second behind Atlanta for five destinations and cheaper than Atlanta in a flight to Washington, D.C. The difference in the prices between Augusta and Atlanta was equivalent to a tank of gas.
A comparison of Mother's Day weekend fares at Augusta Regional Airport against airports in Savannah, Ga., Columbia and Atlanta (all flights leave Friday, May 7, and return Monday, May 10; all prices are the lowest fares and include taxes and fees, but not baggage charges):
| To New York | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Atlanta | $229 | AirTran | 2 hours, 13 minutes |
| From Augusta | $232 | US Airways | 3 hours, 30 minutes |
| From Columbia | $257 | US Airways | 3 hours, 37 minutes |
| From Savannah | $276 | US Airways | 3 hours, 37 minutes |
| To Washington, D.C. | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Augusta | $162 | US Airways | 3 hours, 14 minutes |
| From Atlanta | $189 | AirTran | 1 hour, 47 minutes |
| From Savannah | $214 | US Airways | 3 hours, 49 minutes |
| From Columbia | $220 | United | 1 hour, 22 minutes |
| To Chicago | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Atlanta | $189 | AirTran | 1 hour, 51 minutes |
| From Augusta | $225 | US Airways | 4 hours |
| From Savannah | $317 | US Airways | 4 hours |
| From Columbia | $389 | United | 2 hours, 4 minutes |
| To Miami | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Atlanta | $149 | Delta | 1 hour, 50 minutes |
| From Augusta | $179 | Delta | 3 hours, 40 minutes |
| From Savannah | $366 | American Airlines | 1 hour, 35 minutes |
| From Columbia | $492 | Delta | 3 hours, 45 minutes |
| To Dallas | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Atlanta | $229 | American Airlines | 2 hours, 20 minutes |
| From Augusta | $257 | Delta | 4 hours, 7 minutes |
| From Savannah | $290 | US Airways | 4 hours, 46 minutes |
| From Columbia | $336 | US Airways | 4 hours, 28 minutes |
| To Los Angeles | Fare | Airline | Flight time |
| From Atlanta | $229 | US Airways | 7 hours, 28 minutes |
| From Augusta | $239 | Delta | 6 hours, 43 minutes |
| From Savannah | $306 | US Airways | 7 hours, 28 minutes |
| From Columbia | $359 | Delta | 6 hours, 43 minutes |
Source: Expedia.com
It would have been better to compare prices when most business travellers would be flying.. which is during the week.. not over the weekend. Let's see how the airports stack up then.
Augusta has alot of cheaper flights compared to Columbia. I used to fly out of Columbia before 2005. It would be stupid for the CSRA residents to drive to Atlanta or Columbia. Since 2005 Augusta has a brand new airport terminal, cheaper flights, more flights, and more airlines....
The price comparisons are OK, but look at the flight times. The layovers in Atlanta and Charlotte can be pretty long which is why everyone should factor in the flights from Augusta to Atlanta and to Charlotte for connections to the other destinations listed above. I think I would still choose to fly out of Augusta, though. Whether I wait in the airport in Atlanta for two hours, or drive two hours to Atlanta to catch the flight makes a difference to me.
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