McCarran passenger counts up slightly to start 2017

McCarran International Airport started the year with a slight increase in passenger traffic, buoyed by upticks in both domestic and international travel, the Clark County Department of Aviation reported Monday.

More than 3.67 million airline passengers flew through the nation’s eighth-busiest airport last month, a 3.5 percent jump over January 2016, figures show.

More than 3.34 million passengers boarded or arrived on domestic flights last month, a 3.3 percent increase from a year earlier. International flights arriving or departing McCarran carried 268,337 travelers, a 5.8 percent hike from a year earlier.

If the incremental increases continue through the end of 2017, then McCarran International could break its record set a decade ago with 47.8 million airline passengers. McCarran served 47.4 million passengers in 2016, making it the second-busiest year in the airport’s history.

Market leader Southwest Airlines reported more than 1.35 million passengers in January, a 1.1 percent decrease from 2016. American Airlines, McCarran’s No. 2 carrier, reported a 5.5 percent decrease, with 353,162 passengers last month.

Third-place Delta Air Lines reported a 14.8 percent jump from January 2016 with 324,581 passengers last month. No. 4 United Airlines reported an 8.6 percent increase in traffic with 289,811 passengers. Spirit Airlines, McCarran’s No. 5 carrier, was up 3.7 percent with 238,090 passengers last month.

Las Vegas-based budget carrier Allegiant Air reported 184,614 passengers in January, a 10 percent increase from last year.

Air Canada has an 8.4 percent increase in traffic with 59,261 passengers last month, while Canadian carrier WestJet was down 8.4 percent with 72,607 passengers.

Virgin Atlantic Airways reported a 26.6 percent decrease in traffic with 10,266 passengers. British Airways carried 26,609 passengers in January, a 9.7 percent increase from last year.

Korean Airlines was up 27.5 percent with 11,302 passengers. Chinese budget carrier Hainan Airlines, which launched service in December, reported 4,148 passengers.

Mexican carrier Interjet reported a 166.8 percent leap to 14,609 passengers in January, while Aeromexico had a 21.9 percent dip to 17,768 passengers. Volaris reported 19,896 passengers, a 7.3 percent decline compared with the same period a year earlier.

Contact Art Marroquin at amarroquin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Follow @AMarroquin_LV on Twitter.