Austin-Bergstrom International Airport set a new annual passenger record in 2019 of 17,343,729 travelers, an increase of 9.6% compared to 2018.
That makes for ten consecutive years of records, with traffic now roughly triple what it was when the airport opened in 1999.
However, the airport’s cargo total for the year was 149.5 million pounds, down 3.2% compared to 2018. December saw a sharp drop of 6.2% compared to December 2018.
That may be partly due to international trade tensions but it also could have to do with a standoff between Amazon and FedEx. In December FedEx carried 6.9 million lbs., down 8.8 %. UPS, which still ships for Amazon, carried 4.1 million, up 11.5 %.
In a data release, the city’s airport noted that rising passenger numbers are driven by the addition of 24 new routes offered by nine carriers, including WestJet’s new seasonal nonstop service to Calgary, and Spirit Airlines’ daily service to 10 U.S. destinations,
In May, Lufthansa arrived that it would add nonstop flights from Frankfurt, Germany to Austin, and Norwegian plans to begin nonstop service to Paris. KLM also plans nonstop service to Amsterdam. In 2019, international travel increased by 21%.
The city government last year expanded Austin-Bergstrom International Airport with a nine-gate expansion, plus new concessions in the existing terminal.
The City says that restaurants in the airport sold 1.6 million tacos last year and 72,000 pounds of brisket.
“We have seen tremendous growth and demand at Austin’s airport over the past 20 years,” said Jacqueline Yaft, Executive Director for the Aviation Department. “We are even more thrilled as we look to the horizon, and for what we envision for the future of air travel for Central Texas.”
Yaft took over as airport director in June 2019.
