RDU Reports Slight Growth in Annual Passengers

Airport Authority welcomes John Kane to board

RDU Airport, NC – The number of annual passengers traveling through Raleigh-Durham International Airport grew slightly over 2011. In 2012, 9.22 million passengers traveled through RDU compared to 9.14 million in 2011, a growth of .7 percent. The numbers were released today at the monthly meeting of the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority Board.

In December, 744,884 passengers traveled through RDU compared to 749,693 during the same month last year.

“The numbers today reflect the new normal for U.S. airports,” said RDU Airport Director Mike Landguth. “Airline mergers and a reduction in the number of seats available for purchase have impacted RDU’s passenger growth for the last few years.”

Prior to the meeting, Ted Abernathy, executive director of the Southern Growth Policies Board, spoke to the board about global, national and state economic trends.

“What we are hearing from experts is that it is going to take time for the economy to rebound,” said Landguth. “RDU will continue to see the effects of this. As a result, we will be planning with the assumption that passenger growth will remain flat for the foreseeable future.”

Despite the economy and changes in the air service industry, RDU recently welcomed several new air service announcements.

American Airlines announced new, daily service to Los Angeles that will begin in April. Read the release.

Delta will expand its Los Angeles service to seven days a week. The airline will also add a second flight to Orlando and restart service to Tampa. Frontier Airlines also announced that it will begin service to Trenton, N.J. Read the releases.

“We welcome this new service,” said Landguth. “And we will continue to develop strong partnerships with the local business community to attract and retain air service and the economic benefits it brings to our region.”

RDU Welcomes John Kane to the Board
John Kane, Chairman and CEO of Kane Realty, today became a member of the RDU Airport Authority board. Wake County appointed Kane to replace Michael Weeks, who served on the board for 10 years.

The board governs Raleigh-Durham International Airport. The cities of Durham and Raleigh and the counties of Durham and Wake appoint two members each to the airport’s eight-member board.

The board meets monthly on the third Thursday of each month.

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