Ontario Airport seeing notable increase in passenger volume
An often overlooked option when flying to Southern California is suddenly seeing a large increase in passenger volume, reporting another record month in July.
Ontario International Airport says that in July, they saw a 14.4% increase in travelers compared to the same time period last year, part of a larger trend they've seen in 2024.
They had more than 666,320 passengers last month, breaking the airport's monthly record since transitioning to local ownership in 2016, according to a statement from airport officials. They were just off the all-time record of 693,000, which was set in August 2007.
Of those passengers last month, 629,000 were domestic fliers, which is nearly 17% more than last year's totals in July.
"Our run of year-over-year growth now stands at 41 months as our airline partners and air travelers continue to show their strong preferences for Ontario International Airport," said Atif Elkadi, chief executive officer of the Ontario International Airport Authority. "Airlines are offering more seats to more places to meet the increasing demand for air travel in the Inland Empire, a desirable region to live and work which has experienced significant population gains in recent years, and the higher passenger volumes month after month bear that out."
Since the start of January, the airport has seen nearly 4 million passengers, which is almost 12% higher than the same period of time in 2023.
"Residents and visitors alike can count on our world class facilities, appealing retail and dining options, and our hallmark hassle-free customer experience," Elkadi said.
Frequent travelers say that they've also noticed an increase in traffic at the airport, but it still remains a local favorite and much easier option when it comes to quick and easy travel.
"We love flying into smaller airports to beat the congestion of the bigger airports like LAX," said James Frigo.
Officials say that the increase in traffic comes hand in hand with the increased flight locations being offered by airlines, as well as the rapid population growth underway in the Inland Empire.
