Airport officials in Sioux Falls were hoping the falling price of gas would help passenger numbers rise over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, but that certainly wasn't the case, in part, because airfares haven't been going in the same direction.

Every year Belva Laughlin flies from Seattle to Sioux Falls to visit her parents on Thanksgiving, but she says last year she got a much better deal.

"The prices were definitely lower. Maybe even $100 lower."

The price climb this year appears to have had a big impact on sioux falls this past week, even compared to the rest of the country.

"The nation they say is down 7-8 percent," said Sioux Falls Airport Director Mike Marnach. "We're probably down 10-12 percent."

Marnach says it's no secret people are spending less on things like travel in the current economy, but he says the big local drop in air travel probably has more to do with high fares. Marnach says he doesn't know when that might change.

"The higher prices are in place and they'll have to lower prices to spur demand," he said. "And they're kind of hesitant to do that unless they get forced to do it."

Judging by her flight into Sioux Falls last week, Belva Laughlin says that might already be happening.

"I'd say the plane was maybe three-quarters full," Laughlin said. "I enjoyed having a seat, an empty seat, next to me so it gave me plenty of room to spread out."

Instead of slashing prices, most airlines have tried to increase demand by cutting capacity by at least 10 percent. Despite the strategy, Marnach says there are still plenty of empty seats for holiday flights out of Sioux Falls. That could mean airlines will be forced to offer sales on fares.