NEW ORLEANS – Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport has set an all-time record high in total passenger numbers with a barrage of new airlines, non-stop destinations that includes four international cities.
Based on year-end 2015 airport passenger data, the Airport served a total of 10,673,301 passengers, an increase of 9.1% as compared to last year. Prior to 2015, the Airport’s best year on record was in 2000 with 9,874,257 total passengers.
Building on six consecutive years of growth, the 2015 passenger numbers mark a significant milestone for the Airport.
During the year, passengers were able to enjoy:
• 58,011 cups of gumbo
• 228,253 beignets
• 64,542 plates of jambalaya
• 136,886 po-boys
• 393,671 regular cups of coffee
• 1,040 live music performances
The Airport currently has 14 airlines providing service to 52 non-stop destinations, including four international destinations. These numbers mark another significant milestone in Airport history with the highest number of non-stop destinations ever served among the largest amount of airlines.
The following list highlights the additional air service obtained in 2015:
February 2015
• Allegiant Air: New ultra-low cost airline started service to four destinations – Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Columbus-Rickenbacker and Orlando-Sanford
March 2015
• Southwest Airlines: Started service to San Antonio
• Delta Air Lines: Started seasonal service to Cancun
May 2015
• Vacation Express: Started seasonal service to Punta Cana
• Branson AirExpress: New airline started service to Branson and seasonal service to Cancun
June 2015
• Southwest Airlines: Started service to Oakland
• Copa Airlines: New airline started international service to Panama City, Panama
• United Airlines: Started seasonal service to Cancun
November 2015
• Delta Air Lines: Added additional flight to Detroit
• Spirit Airlines: Started service to Las Vegas
• GLO: New airline that started service to Little Rock and Memphis
• Allegiant Air: Announced service to Pittsburgh starting in February 2016
• Spirit Airlines: Announced service to Los Angeles and Atlanta starting in April 2016
December 2015
• GLO: Added non-stop service to Shreveport
Furthermore, 2016 has kicked off with more new service announcements, including Frontier Airlines announcing new service to Philadelphia and Orlando to begin in April 2016 as well as Allegiant Air announcing new flights to Jacksonville and St. Petersburg-Clearwater to also begin in April 2016.
“The new terminal at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport will be transformational,” said New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “We appreciate the airlines’ continued investment in our market and look forward to providing an even greater experience when the new North Terminal is unveiled in 2018.”
“The Aviation Board is committed to growing air service within our region,” New Orleans Aviation Board Chairwoman, Cheryl Teamer, said. “The Executive Director and Airport staff is commended for reaching this major milestone of breaking the 10 million passenger mark.”
“The Airport’s achievements are symbols of growth within our region,” New Orleans Councilman Jared Brossett, Chair of the Transportation and Aviation Committee, said. “From more business opportunities to an increase in tourism, our Airport is an economic engine of our region.”
“We have come a long way from 7,781,678 passengers in 2009 to 10,673,301 passengers in 2015,” Director of Aviation Iftikhar Ahmad said. “With five years of continued growth, we have broken numerous records including our total number of non-stop destinations and total number of airlines. 2015 was also the year we started service with Copa to Latin America and regional non-stop service with a New Orleans based airline.”
