Airline Competition:

Fare and Service Changes at St. Louis Since the TWA-Ozark Merger

RCED-88-217BR: Published: Sep 20, 1988. Publicly Released: Sep 21, 1988.

Additional Materials:

Contact:

Office of Public Affairs
(202) 512-4800
youngc1@gao.gov

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO analyzed fare and service changes at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport after two principal carriers, which individually handled 56 percent and 26 percent of all enplanements, merged.

GAO found that: (1) the remaining airline handled 82 percent of enplanements and increased its direct, nonstop, and jet service to more cities; (2) no other airline handled more than 3 percent of enplanements; (3) the other airlines reduced the number of routes they served from 83 to 66 and provided nonstop and direct services to fewer cities; (4) the remaining airline offered 75 percent of flights on 80 percent of nonstop routes and was the only nonstop carrier on 76 percent of routes; (5) the remaining airline's round-trip fares on 67 major routes increased by 13 to 18 percent, as compared to an average increase of 5 to 6 percent for all airlines; and (6) the remaining airline increased its fares at another airport at the average rate. GAO believes that other airlines which attempt to add flights or gain a larger share of enplanements at St. Louis would face difficulties in: (1) obtaining facilities; (2) overcoming the effects of airline marketing tools such as frequent flyer programs, travel agent commission overrides, and computerized reservation systems; and (3) matching the number of flights the merged airline offered.

Sep 30, 2020

Sep 8, 2020

Sep 2, 2020

Aug 20, 2020

Aug 18, 2020

Aug 10, 2020

Jul 27, 2020

Jul 16, 2020

Looking for more? Browse all our products here