REGIONAL airlines are having a "tough time" according to the Island's Infrastructure Minister.
Phil Gawne spoke out after passenger figures for August showed only a 0.5 per cent increase compared to the same time period last year.
65,964 passengers travelled through Ronaldsway last month - an increase of just 367 from the previous year.
He said: "We are very much aware that regional airlines are continuing to have a relatively tough time given the very flat UK economy.
"It is vitally important that we strive to maintain our current network of around 20 scheduled service destinations - many of them providing year-round links with UK regions.
"In order to achieve this our airlines need to have a good strong summer to support the leaner winter period so that hopefully, with economic improvements in the future, we can encourage airlines to consider expanding the network of destinations from the Isle of Man."
The figures for August show that 300 fewer passengers used the Manchester and Blackpool routes but the overall traffic for the North West was still up by more than five per cent.
The Liverpool route showed a 14 per cent increase with 1,900 additional passengers flying with Flybe and easyJet.
There were also improvements on the Birmingham, Belfast City, Dublin and Southampton routes.
Aer Arran saw a 6.5 per cent increase in Dublin traffic and their London City service averaged two thirds full for August – traditionally a quieter time for this business route.
Charter operations also saw a 28 per cent increase in passengers with support for the range of direct holiday flights offered to the Mediterranean.
Airport director Ann Reynolds said: "August is one of our busiest months of the year and has in the past generated over 70,000 passengers - but this level has not been experienced in recent years.
"We were hopeful that we would see a more emphatic increase for August this year but market conditions have remained very difficult for the airlines as is the case for many UK regional airports.
"At the moment there is no indication of a resurgence of traffic and therefore to be able to maintain 2010 levels is a pretty solid outcome."
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