Jul. 31—Passenger traffic at the Dayton International Airport declined last month for the first time this year, which also was the first year-over-year decrease in enplanements since June 2023, according to data from Dayton's aviation division.
Local boardings are up about 7% in the first half of this year and aviation officials say the statistics show growing demand for local air travel and reflect a strong and dynamic market.
"Over the past months, airlines serving the Dayton International Airport have been increasing seat capacity for the traveling public," said Dayton aviation director Gil Turner. "The traveling public has responded to the additional capacity, and we are experiencing healthy capacity absorption rates."
All aboard
About 55,645 people boarded flights at the Dayton International Airport in June, which was down about 1% from June 2023, according to airport data.
It was the first monthly decline in enplanements in 2024. Also, passenger traffic had grown year-over-year for 11 consecutive months — the last time they declined was in June 2023, when they fell by 2%.
This year, boardings increased year-over-year 9% in May; 13% in April; 4% in March and 10% in both February and January.
Turner said last month's decline in enplanements coincided with the temporary suspension of a flight from Dayton to LaGuardia Airport in New York City.
That service, operated by American Airlines, is expected to resume in September, Turner said.
2024 numbers
About 314,600 people have traveled through the Dayton airport in the first half of this year — 7% more passengers than during the same period in 2023.
Turner said it's important for the community to fly in and out of their hometown airport.
"When people use the Dayton International Airport, it shows airlines that demand for our market is strong," Turner said. "As more and more people use DAY, the airlines take notice and are more likely to consider adding frequencies in existing markets and even introduce service to new destinations."
Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein said the city is glad to see the travel industry rebound at the airport.
She said the airport's leadership team and city partners will continue to work to attract more flights and encourage the community to fly in and out of the local aviation facility.
"The recent growth in enplanements at DAY and the addition of new routes by United is a positive trend and signals customer and community confidence in the quality of the air service provided at DAY," Dickstein said.
The airport saw the reinstatement of nonstop service to Denver last year, and United Airlines has added two more nonstop flights to the Washington, D.C. area.
The Dayton International Airport typically has about a dozen routes that offer nonstop service. Some local flights go to large hub airports in Atlanta, Denver, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia.
Local boardings plummeted in 2020 and have yet to fully recover. COVID pummeled air travel in cities across the nation.
The Dayton International Airport had about 621,400 enplanements in 2023 — 30% fewer boardings than in 2019, pre-pandemic.
Turner said the aviation industry has changed considerably since 2019.
But he said the airport makes a good business case to airlines for retaining existing service and adding strategic routes.
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