About Gary Leff

Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel - a topic he has covered since 2002. Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »

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Did you know you’re paying for this?

The federal government is paying out $113 million a year in airline subsidies in exchange for serving small communities that (in theory) can’t support the service based on the business they provide. Federal taxpayers are spending up to $567 per passenger to subsidize air service to rural communities that may have as few as two or three air travelers a day. Some more snippets from the piece: _ The federal cost has jumped from $22.6 million in 1996 to $113 million this year — a fivefold increase. The increase is explained in part by a growth in the number of communities served from 97 to 135 and rising expenses, such as fuel. _ The average per passenger subsidy paid to airlines nearly tripled to $229 per passenger for each flight in the 48 continental states…

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