Shreveport Airport Says Holiday Travel Is Looking Strong

(Shreveport, LA) - Holiday travelers flying out of Shreveport Regional Airport have some reassuring news. While national headlines warn of possible airline schedule cuts tied to higher fuel prices, airport officials say SHV is seeing strong passenger traffic and isn't currently expecting fewer flights. In fact, new nonstop service is on the way.

According to Reuters, United Airlines Chief Financial Officer Michael Leskinen recently indicated the carrier could reduce some December flights or scale back planned expansion as airlines deal with higher jet fuel costs. That's certainly worth watching nationally, but locally, the picture at SHV looks much different.

Shreveport Airport Expects Holiday Travel to Stay on Track

If Shreveport Regional Airport is your usual starting point, there's no reason right now to let those national headlines change your holiday plans.

Mark Crawford with Shreveport Regional Airport says passenger traffic has actually been strong, and airport officials do not currently expect higher fuel prices to reduce the number of flights serving Shreveport.

"September this year has been busier than usual, with numbers comparing similarly to May passenger numbers," Crawford said. "At this time, we don’t expect fuel prices to affect the number of flights at SHV."

And there’s more good news.

Allegiant is bringing back nonstop service to Orlando for the fall and winter, while United begins nonstop service to Chicago on October 25.

More Flights, Not Fewer, Coming to SHV

That's probably the most important takeaway for Shreveport travelers.

While people around the country are reading about possible airline reductions, SHV is preparing to add service, not lose it.

Of course, weather and the usual holiday travel headaches can always affect individual flights. But when it comes to the concerns surrounding fuel prices and airline schedule reductions, airport officials aren't currently expecting Shreveport to take the hit.

So, if you've been holding off on booking Christmas or Thanksgiving travel because of the recent headlines, the outlook from SHV is encouraging.

For now, Shreveport's holiday travel season appears to be on track, with strong passenger numbers and additional nonstop options arriving just in time for the busiest travel months of the year.