MSP had a near-record year for passenger levels in 2016, as 37.5 million people flew in and out of the airport.
Only 2005, which saw 37.6 million passengers, was a busier year at MSP.
“The airport’s performance mirrors the Upper Midwest’s strong economy and continues the trend of rising passenger numbers,” said Brian Ryks, executive director and CEO of the Metropolitan Airports Commission, which owns and operates the airport. “New routes offered at MSP also contributed to 2016’s uptick. Provided the economy remains strong, we expect that growth to continue in 2017 and beyond.”
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The passenger numbers for 2016 were up 2.6 percent from 2015, assisted in part by 20 new routes added by nine different airlines.
Delta Air Lines, which operates a hub at MSP, added five new routes.
American Airlines, Sun Country Airlines and Spirit Airlines added three each.
Two new carriers also started offering service in 2016 to cities in the Midwest. Air Choice One began service to Ironwood, Mich., and Mason City and Ft. Dodge, Iowa. Boutique Air launched service to Thief River Falls, Minn.
In 2017, new routes out of MSP are already lined up, including Southwest Airlines’ nonstop service to Nashville starting in June, KLM flying to Amsterdam in March, Alaska Airlines serving San Francisco beginning in July and Delta flying to Marquette, Mich., starting in March.
MSP also has airline competition on a record 53 of the 155 non-stop routes available, keeping airfares competitive.
A total of 58 percent of MSP’s passengers were on flights that originated at the airport, while 42 percent of passengers were connecting.
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The number of operations – take-offs and landings – at the airport also increased in 2016, rising 2.2 percent to 413,460.
The growth in operations reflects the additional routes added in the last year and trends in the airline industry. In the last several years airlines had been replacing small, 50-seat regional jets with larger aircraft, which had the effect of reducing the number of operations.
With most of those small aircraft now out of the market, airlines are beginning to add more flights to match capacity needs.
The growth in operations at MSP last year marked the first increase since 2010.
By passengers served, MSP’s largest airline carriers (including regional partners) in 2016 included:
- Delta Air Lines: 25.8 million
- American: 2.4 million
- Sun Country: 2.2 million
- Southwest: 2.1 million
- United: 1.7 million
- Spirit: 1.2 million
- Frontier: 328,000
- Alaska: 276,000
