Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport saw 21 million travelers pass through its doors last year.
The record-setting year of 21,044,384 commercial fliers represents an increase of 1.7 percent over 2006 and is a record for the airport.
The new numbers were released two days after data from the U.S. Department of Transportation showed BWI led all major U.S. airports in on-time arrival in December, with 74.15 percent of flights running on time. For the year, BWI led all major airports with an on-time arrival rate of 77.55 percent.
“BWI is generally recognized as a low-delay, low-cost airport,” airport spokesman Jonathan Dean said. “Airlines, particularly some of the low-cost carriers, certainly look to airports that are efficient, and BWI emphasizes efficiency.”
The record numbers could be tough to repeat. Dean said increasing fuel costs and general economic downturn would present challenges to carriers this year.
Southwest again dominated traffic at the airport, serving 11 million passengers and accounting for 52.5 percent of the airport?s market share. The airline added service to new markets including Pittsburgh and Oklahoma City.
Discount carrier AirTran Airways saw the largest growth of any carrier at BWI, carrying 2.5 million passengers, 16.7 percent more than in 2006. The airline added nonstop service to Portland, Maine, and seasonal service to four other cities.
“With fuel prices where they are right now, we?ll have to be careful about growth, but BWI has been a big success for us,” said John Kirby, senior director of planning for AirTran. “They recognize really what the goal is, to provide the best air service in the region.”
AirTran started service at BWI on Dec. 12, 2001, expanding to 20 daily departures in the following months. The carrier reached 48 daily departures last summer, and Kirby said he expected to crack 50 later this year. Kirby said the airline?s growth at BWI would likely include both additional flights to existing destinations and service to new cities.
“The continued growth at BWI Marshall reflects our overriding commitment to customer service,” Gov. Martin O?Malley said in a statement announcing the numbers. “BWI Marshall is the airport of choice for millions of passengers because of the excellent range of air service that our airline partners provide and the fact that Maryland?s premier airport is a world-class facility.”
