Good news for consumers: The average domestic air fare during the April-to-June quarter this year fell to the lowest level for that period since 1998, tumbling by 13 percent from the second quarter of 2008, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics said Wednesday, Oct. 28.

That was the largest year-to-year price decline on record, the agency reported.

The report is based on average fares, round-trip or one-way. The government’s statistical assessment defines fares as the price paid at the time of the ticket purchase, excluding other charges such as baggage fees.

The average fare during the April-June quarter at Dayton International Airport was $291.85, down 17 percent from a year earlier, according to the government. The airports at Columbus and Indianapolis had lower average fares. The Columbus average fare was $275.01, down 15 percent, and Indianapolis was $276.73, down 11 percent.

Cincinnati, which in recent years has often had the nation’s most expensive fares, saw its average fare fall by nearly 39 percent to $363.69. Delta Air Lines and its Comair subsidiary are the dominant carriers at Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport.