Blue Skies for business travelers: Industry sees 'fear factor' diminishing.

• Author: Ostermiller, Pamela
• Position: Business Travel

If you've seen the recent "Why Delta Flies" television campaign, you may recall that one reason for flying, as delivered by an actor with a determined jaw, is that "this is not the kind of contract you can fax." For business travelers, since the September 11 attacks, this ad reveals a truth of the post-September 11 world: Work goes on. Combating a number of factors and repercussions, including airport closures, security issues and fear, has been a constant battle for travelers. The most obvious change, however, is that businesses and employees have been forced to reexamine their itineraries and question, "Is this trip to the New York office really necessary?"

But did the attacks have the assumed devastating effect on business travelers, including those from Utah-based corporations and related industries, specifically travel agencies? The answer is yes -- and no.

Travel agencies "are a pretty good barometer" for what has occurred in business travel over the past six months, says Mike Cameron, president of Christopherson Travel Group, Utah's number one agency for business travel with more than 600 corporate clients including Evans & Sutherland, CompHealth and Iomega. According to Cameron, his company experienced a 30 percent loss of September's expected revenue, followed by approximately 20 and 10 percent losses in October and November, respectively.

But business travel -- not only the company's specialty but also its mainstay -- had already been on the decline, and not just because of terrorism threats. "We saw a slowdown in business travel starting in March of last year, relating to the economy," Cameron says. "Travel is the third-largest controllable expense, behind employee and information technology costs. By September, unnecessary travel had already been eliminated and most businesses were already down to core travel."

In fact, Cameron says that business travelers, as compared to vacation and leisure travelers, have proven to be more equipped to cope with and adapt to "getting back in the saddle." They know how to pack carefully and efficiently; they understand the rigmarole of security; and the fact is, sometimes travel is unavoidable.

"In the short term, everybody was paranoid," Cameron explains. "But seasoned travelers know that travel is safer than it was before. They are the 'Road Warriors."'

Antoinette Cirone, travel program coordinator for Iomega, says that only minor changes in the company's travel policies were implemented...