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Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport Celebrates Record Year for Departing Passengers

January 31, 2019

The Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport is proud to announce that 2018 is the second best year on record for enplanements with nearly 1.94 million departing passengers. During the past 12 months, the airlines added an additional 195,000 seats to Louisville’s flight schedule, an 8.5 percent capacity increase. September 2018 through December 2018 proved to be those months busiest in the history of the airport for departing passengers.

“2018 was a banner year for the airport,” said Dan Mann, Executive Director of the Louisville Regional Airport Authority. “We launched four new destinations, saw the airport’s fastest passenger growth rate in 25 years and announced nonstop service to Los Angeles that begins this April. We are eager to carry this energy into 2019.”

Last year also saw a new addition to the market with Frontier Airlines. Frontier returned to Louisville and launched service to Denver International Airport (DEN) in Denver, CO and seasonal flights to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) Austin, TX and Orlando International Airport (MCO) in Orlando, FL. Allegiant Air, another ultra, low-cost air carrier, added seasonal summer service to Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR) in Myrtle Beach, SC and Jacksonville International Airport (JAX) in Jacksonville, FL.

Service to Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) in New Orleans, LA, begins next month on Thursday, February 28. Southwest Airlines added nonstop flights to William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) in Houston, TX and Dallas Love Field (DAL) in Dallas, TX. United Airlines added a second daily flight to Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) in Washington D.C.

“The fact we now have 33 nonstop destinations compared to 21 only two years ago is phenomenal,” added Mann. “That’s a 57 percent increase, which speaks to the strength of our market.”

American Airlines added a second daily flight to Miami International Airport (MIA) in Miami, FL and a third daily flight to New York’s LaGuardia (LGA). American also began utilizing larger aircraft with Wi-Fi and first class seating to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) in Philadelphia, PA.

Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport is served by six airlines offering flights to 33 nonstop destinations including 19 of the region’s top 20 domestic markets. With just one stop, travelers from across the region can reach more than 460 destinations in the U.S. and worldwide.