Miami International Airport Passenger Growth Surges To New All-Time High
MIAMI – Passenger growth at Miami International Airport (MIA) went into overdrive in 2015, with annual traffic reaching 44.3 million passengers – three million more travelers than the prior year.
The busiest U.S. airport for international freight also matched its 2014 record of 2.17 million tons of cargo, according to final audited statistics compiled by the Miami-Dade Aviation Department.
The global gateway achieved its largest growth rate ever for annual passengers, up 8.3 percent year over year. Domestic passengers surged by 11 percent to reach 23.1 million, while international traffic rose 5.5 percent and accounted for 21.2 million travelers.
Despite the decline of economies in many key Latin American and European markets, MIA held its ground as one of the world’s top 10 air cargo hubs, with 1.9 million tons of international freight and 256,891 tons of domestic shipments.
“I cannot say enough about how pleased I am with the growth at MIA in 2015,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez. “In addition to being our County’s top economic engine and one of Florida’s most valued assets, MIA is fast-becoming one of the busiest airports in the nation and in the world.”
An impressive mix of new carriers, routes and superjumbo aircraft added in the fourth quarter of 2015 contributed to MIA’s sharp increase in passenger traffic. From October to December, MIA welcomed: new carriers Turkish Airlines, Austrian Airlines and low-cost carrier VivaColombia; new A380 superjumbo service by British Airways and Air France; and increased frequencies by international carriers airberlin, Lufthansa, Qatar, SWISS, Virgin Atlantic and WestJet.
For the year, Hub carrier American Airlines was responsible for 50 percent of MIA’s growth, while other existing carriers contributed 25 percent and new carriers generated the remaining 25 percent.
MIA’s expanding international network will continue to broaden in 2016, when German low-cost carrier Eurowings begins service to Cologne in May and Scandinavian Airlines launches first-ever nonstop service to Copenhagen and Oslo in the fall.
“2015 was without question our most amazing year ever for passenger growth,” said Miami-Dade Aviation Director Emilio T. González. “In addition to growing by three million passengers in one year, the six new passenger airlines added in 2015 makes 12 in the last two years, or one new entrant carrier every other month. With the most airlines of any U.S. airport, and the continued expansion of hub carrier American Airlines and other existing carriers, MIA is poised to reach greater heights in 2016.”
