Hi, not to rain on your parade and not to even take up for the airlines (I''d be the last to do that), but your situation is odd.
I'm from Pensacola and it costs me more to fly out of there than it does, if I would drive an hour to Fort Walton Beach.
The airlines at PNS are sharks where if you go through VPS (FWB) you pay a lot less. It is a real pain, having to go over there and then to find this tiny airport crammed full of people.
I wish things here were the same as they are up north. PNS being the largest would then be cheaper.