Punta Gorda airport keeps growing

Allegiant is the only airline serving Punta Gorda Airport, but the discount carrier's passenger traffic growth is impressive.

Through June, the airport in Charlotte County reports 162,540 passengers have passed through its gates. That's a 28% increase over the same six months in 2012.

Allegiant, which operates a travel agency and often flies with few empty seats, flies nonstop to small, underserved cities such as Fort Wayne, Ind., Niagara Falls, N.Y., Knoxville, Tenn., and Lexington, Ky.

In June 2012, the airline established a base of operations in Punta Gorda with an MD-80 jet and its crew. That boosted its presence at the airport that has seen its share of discount airlines come and go. DirectAir, a competing carrier that served Punta Gorda, ended service in March 2012.