Press Room

Posted on: Thu, 05/16/2024 - 05:00

(Ontario, California – May 16, 2024) – Ontario International Airport (ONT) continued its robust growth in passenger volume in April, increasing 8% to more than 573,000 and extending its run of year-over-year increases to 38 consecutive months.

The Southern California gateway welcomed more than 537,000 domestic passengers and 36,000 international travelers, increases of 8.2% and 5.5%, respectively, compared with April last year.

During the first four months of the year, ONT drew more than 2 million passengers, 9.4% more than the same period in 2023. The number of domestic and international fliers increased by 6.9% and 51.9%, respectively.

“April was another strong month for passenger growth,” said Atif Elkadi, chief executive officer of the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA). “As our airport continues to gain in popularity among air passengers, our airline partners are adding new routes and expanding existing services, all of which bodes well for air travel through the Inland Empire for the remainder of the year.”

The air carriers with the greatest passenger shares in April were:

1. Southwest Airlines (37.0%)
2. American Airlines (16.1%)
3. Frontier Airlines (14.6%)
4. Delta Air Lines (10.6%)
5. Alaska Airlines (7.0%)

Passenger Totals	Apr 2024	Apr 2023	Change	YTD 2024	YTD 2023	Change
Domestic	537,141	496,298	8.2%	1,891,071	1,769,206	6.9%
International	36,326	34,435	5.5%	158,878	104,569	51.9%
Total	573,467	530,733	8.1%	2,049,949	1,873,775	9.4%

 

Elkadi noted that ONT is benefitting from recent population increases in the Inland Empire and proving to be an appealing and easily accessible option for Southern California air travel. The airport earlier reported it expects to serve nearly 2.2 million passengers this summer, a 15.1% increase over last summer and more than double an Airlines for America (A4A) industry forecast of a 6.3% by U.S. airlines this summer.

Total cargo shipments rebounded in April growing to almost 61,000 tons, a 4.1% increase over the same month last year. Air freight increased 8.8% year-over-year to more than 58,500 tons.

Over the first four months of 2024, freight shipments were 1.3% higher while total cargo of freight and mail combined decreased slightly by 2.3%.

 

Air cargo (tonnage)	Apr 2024	Apr 2023	Change	YTD 2024	YTD 2023	Change
Freight	58,544	53,822	8.8%	227,343	224,354	1.3%
Mail	2,423	4,753	-49.0%	10,243	18,704	-45.2%
Total	60,968	58,576	4.1%	237,586	243,057	-2.3%

 

“Strong demand for consumer goods helped to turn freight volume positive in April and through the first four months of the year,” Elkadi said. “We have been anticipating a return to growth on the cargo side and we are pleased by the April volume.”

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About Ontario International Airport

Ontario International Airport (ONT) is California’s most popular airport, according to J.D. Power’s most recent North America Airport Satisfaction Study. Located in the Inland Empire, ONT is approximately 35 miles east of downtown Los Angeles in the center of Southern California. It is a full-service airport which offers nonstop commercial jet service to two dozen major airports in the U.S., Mexico, Central America and Taiwan. More information is available at www.flyOntario.com. Follow @flyONT on Facebook,

X (formerly Twitter), and Instagram.

 

About the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA)

The OIAA was formed in August 2012 by a Joint Powers Agreement between the City of Ontario and the County of San Bernardino to provide overall direction for the management, operations, development and marketing of ONT for the benefit of the Southern California economy and the residents of the airport's four-county catchment area. OIAA leaders include Ontario City Council Member Alan D. Wapner (President), San Bernardino County Supervisor Curt Hagman (Vice President), Ontario City Council Member Jim W. Bowman (Secretary), Retired Riverside Mayor Ronald O. Loveridge (Treasurer) and retired business executive Julia Gouw (Commissioner).