Airline deal blessings could be mixed for Gulf

Two dominant low-fare airlines that carry thousands of visitors to the Gulf Coast's three major airports are combining and tourism industry officials are watching closely.

Southwest Airlines announced that it plans to acquire AirTran for $1.4 billion. In some cases, the two airlines compete on some routes and are dominant carriers in Tampa and Fort Myers, leading to speculation about future service cuts and fare increases.

For example, Southwest and AirTran compete to fly passengers nonstop from Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers to Baltimore and Chicago. While Fort Myers airport executives say it's too early to tell the impact of the merger, it's possible that fares may be less competitive on those routes than they have in the past. Combined, Southwest and AirTran made up 28% of the passenger traffic in Fort Myers so far this year.