Fredericton Airport Posts Record-Breaking Passenger Growth in 2016
FREDERICTON – The Fredericton Internation Airport announced Monday that it has broken its passenger traffic records for the seventh consecutive year.
The airport says it continues to out-perform the North American industry average, with 377,977 passengers travelling through in the last year. This represents an eight per cent increase in traffic compared to 2015, while the industry average growth for North America was just 3.2 per cent in 2015.
“Seven years of growth is phenomenal, and that growth is really reflective of the hard work of both the dedicated team here at FIAA, and the support of our partners in the airport and throughout the community,” said Fredericton International Airport Authority (FIAA) president and CEO Johanne Gallant, in a news release.
“Businesses, start-ups, the provincial and City of Fredericton tourism departments, and leisure travellers have all played a major role in the airport’s continued growth, and we appreciate their support.”
The Fredericton International Airport launched a third daily WestJet flight to Toronto in early 2016, along with sun charters to three destinations. The sun charters have since expanded to include five destinations for the 2017 season. Strong loads on Air Canada continued in 2016, with passengers taking advantage of their extensive network of connections via Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Halifax.
But the airport says the continued growth trend has placed a strain on its outdated infrastructure. It says for 10 years now, the terminal has been operating beyond the capacity it was designed to handle. Designs for an expansion and renovation are complete, and the airport authority has one-third of the funding in place. It continues to work with the provincial and federal government to secure matching funds so that the project can move forward.