Sarasota Bradenton airport sets another new record with 3.8 million passengers in 2022
Sarasota Bradenton International Airport, the nation’s fastest growing, closed out 2022 with a record 3.8 million passengers served, shattering the previous record by nearly 700,000.
“Despite having 204 flight cancellations in December, partially due to Winter Storm Elliott, more passengers traveled through SRQ last month than any December in the history of the airport,” Rick Piccolo, the airport’s CEO and president, said in a press release.
In late December, Southwest Airlines experienced four days of nationwide cancellations because of weather and the meltdown of its internal computer scheduling system.
For the month, 377,775 passengers traveled through SRQ, compared to 347,268 passengers in December 2021, an increase of 8.8%.
Airport officials expect to see continued passenger growth for the foreseeable future.
Over the past five years, the airport passenger traffic has tripled from under 1.2 million passengers in 2017 to over 3.8 million passengers in 2022.
“There continues to be great demand to live, work, and visit our boutique community, and its world-renowned beaches, partake in year-round outdoor activities offered, and experience arts and culture that you would normally only find in a larger city. This is why it is imperative the Airport Authority continues to expand the airport with additional aircraft gates, concessions, parking, and other amenities necessary to facilitate the increased demand impacting our community,” Piccolo said.
An estimated $165 million in airport expansion projects are getting underway to accommodate the massive passenger growth.
New service starting soon
▪ Feb. 17, Raleigh-Durham (RDU) - Avelo Airlines
▪ March 11, Buffalo (BUF) - Southwest
▪ March 11, Minneapolis (MSP) - Southwest
▪ March 11, Providence (PVD) - Southwest
Returning service
▪ March 11, Cincinnati (CVG) - Southwest
▪ March 11, Milwaukee (MKE) – Southwest
▪ March 11, Washington, DC (DCA) - Southwest
