January Passenger Traffic Increases 11.2% At RIC

Richmond International Airport (RIC) reports passenger traffic for January increased 11.2 percent versus the same period last year, resulting in a new all-time January record of 256,055 passengers. This surpasses the previous mark established in January 2008.

Passenger Growth
January passenger traffic of 256,055 in 2017 was up from 230,187 in 2016.  Delta Air Lines was the market share leader in January with 35.1 percent of passengers carried, followed by American (30.1 percent) and United (13.2 percent).  Four airlines reported year-over-year passenger growth, including JetBlue (+30.9%), United (+18.3%), Delta (+8.9%), and American (+6.3%).

For the first seven months of fiscal year 2017 (FY17), total passenger traffic is up 2.8 percent (2,117,658 in FY17 vs. 2,059,916 in FY16).

Cargo and Operations
Total cargo, measured as the sum of freight and mail, increased 11.7 percent from last January and is up 14.6 percent for the fiscal year. In January, aircraft operations decreased 1.8 percent from last year.

Service Notes

• Beginning June 8th, Delta Air Lines will launch a second daily nonstop flight between Richmond and the airline’s Minneapolis/St. Paul (MSP) hub.
• United Airlines is upgrading to a larger aircraft in June for its daily Richmond-to-Denver nonstop flight. The 76-seat Embraer EMB 175 will be swapped out for a 128-seat Airbus A319.
• On March 22nd, OneJet Airlines will inaugurate daily nonstop service between Richmond and Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT). In addition, the airline will add a second nonstop flight to PIT beginning in April. Tickets are now on sale.

About Richmond International Airport (RIC)
Richmond International Airport (RIC) www.flyrichmond.com is one of the most modern and well-equipped airports in the eastern United States. Scheduled service from RIC offers nonstop flights to major domestic destinations and connecting options to points around the globe. More than 3.5 million passengers and 130 million pounds of cargo travel through RIC annually. For more information, please visit flyrichmond.com.

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Contact:
Troy M. Bell, C.M.
Director – Marketing & Air Service Development
tbell@flyrichmond.com