Planning a flight? Bradley International Airport might not be the most economical choice for your departure point, Nate Silver says at his New York Times Blog, FiveThirtyEight.

Silver, best known for his political commentary and analysis, is expanding to provide guidance to consumers using statistical date-crunching. (His debut column: “How to beat the salad bar“.) With his customary thoroughness, Silver has explored ticket pricing at American airports to determine which are overpriced and which are bargains.

Bradley makes his list of the 15 most overpriced large airports, though not by much: Average prices are about 4 percent higher than the “fair” fare, according to Silver’s calculations. The worst big airport, Bush International in Houston, charges a premium of 24 percent.

There are less expensive alternatives, including, surprisingly, JFK in New York. Others include Westchester County and Plattsburgh International, both right across the border in New York.

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