Airline cutbacks hit convention cities

There are fewer airline seats available in October compared with October last year on flights scheduled to depart from the top 10 cities for business meetings: City Seats (Oct. 2008) Change New York 5,981,894 -3% Chicago 4,847,818 -8% Atlanta 4,714,474 -2% Los Angeles 4,334,891 -12% Washington 3,551,386 -6% Las Vegas 2,229,257 -13% Philadelphia 1,792,918 -2% Orlando 1,583,702 -14% Boston 1,466,404 -8% San Diego 975,501 -10% Sources: 2008 Meetings Market Report by Meetings & Conventions magazine, USA TODAY analysis of airline schedules data from OAG-Official Airline Guide