Airport Munis

摘要

As airlines file for bankruptcy protection and passengers stay at home, the battered travel sector looks like a bad place to put your money. But smart investors can cash in on the market's fear of flying by acquiring airport municipal bonds. Air travel dropped 5% in 2002 and 7% in 2001, falling victim to terrorism, the skidding economy and war fears. Airline Stocks show the scars, with the Amex Airline Index falling 63% since Sept. 11, 2001. But with airport bonds, investors should look past the well-publicized woes of individual airlines, like UAL's United Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy protection in December 2002, or US Airways, which emerged from Chapter 11 in March. Airport bonds are tied to all the revenue an airport brings in, so their health depends only partially on the main airline using the airport as a hub. And even if the hub airline stops flying, which none have done in the latest round of bankruptcies, airport bonds are nearly all insured.