Independence Air iClub - Southwest BWI traffic declines 22.5% because of competition from Independence Air

Competition from Independence Air at Washington Dulles International Airport played a part in a nearly 22.5 percent decline in passenger traffic for Southwest Airlines between April and August.

The biggest carrier at BWI, Southwest carried more than 3.5 million passengers during that period.

With only $24 million in cash on hand, Independence Air now hopes to find a new investor willing to prop up the company, or it could sell its assets as part of a court-supervised auction. The company has set a January deadline for making a decision.

It's also possible that another low-cost carrier may set up at Dulles to fill the void, competing with BWI for the region.

Independence at IAD is a big reason for WN's declining numbers at BWI, but I think WN at PHL is also a major reason as many of the WN pax from PA who used to drive to BWI now fly out of PHL. And with the additional gates WN is leasing at PHL they may expand to over 100 daily departures out of PHL pulling more traffic away from BWI.