NEW ORLEANS – The Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) announced today that a record-breaking 1.2 million passengers traveled through MSY in March 2018. This marks the highest number of passengers served in a single month. The March 2018 figures are 13.1 percent higher than March 2017, and they represent nearly 100,000 more passengers than MSY’s previous record-high month in May 2017.

Much of the increase in passengers can be attributed to the Airport’s fastest growing air carrier—Spirit Airlines. When compared to the same time last year, Spirit has more than doubled the number of flights to and from MSY and increased seats by 89 percent. Since March 2017, Spirit launched new flights to eight destinations including Boston (BOS), Baltimore (BWI), Cleveland (CLE), Columbus (CMH), Minneapolis (MSP), Newark (EWR), Orlando (MCO), and Tampa (TPA).

“As our Airport continues to grow, more visitors from around the world get the opportunity to come and experience the unique culture of our City,” said New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “It is very exciting to see this boost in passengers at the Airport as we move toward the opening of the new terminal in February 2019.”

Several new flight frequencies that support this growth were also added in March 2018. Southwest Airlines, MSY’s largest air carrier, added additional flights to nine destinations including Atlanta (ATL), Austin (AUS), Chicago-Midway (MDW), Dallas (DAL), Las Vegas (LAS), Kansas City (MCI), Orlando (MCO), Phoenix (PHX), and St. Louis (STL) as well as a new nonstop destination to Sacramento (SMF).

“Last year, the Airport saw a record-breaking 12 million passengers traveling through the Airport,” said New Orleans Aviation Board Chairwoman, Cheryl Teamer. “This upward trend is continuing as we strive to deliver the best quality service to the traveling public.”

“The exponential growth of the Airport over the last three years can no doubt be attributed to the economic vitality of the Greater New Orleans region,” said Kevin Dolliole, Director of Aviation for Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.”Already in 2018, the Airport is up 14 percent in total passengers year-to-date. As the region continues to thrive, our staff will lobby for new service from the airlines to further connect our community to the world and bring new visitors to New Orleans.”

District D City Councilmember Jared Brossett, Chairperson of the Transportation and Airport Committee said, “I’m pleased to see Armstrong International Airport keep up the momentum after a successful 2017. As the airport grows, residents from across New Orleans will benefit from the economic impact.”

Building on the increase in air service in March, two new airlines will begin new flights at MSY this year: Silver Airways in August and Sun Country Airlines in September. Two new nonstop destinations were also added in April with flights to San Jose (SJC) via Southwest Airlines and Atlantic City (ACY) via Spirit Airlines. MSY now offers a total of 54 nonstop destinations from 16 airlines.

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