Airport continues posting gains

For four months in a row now, Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is posting year-over-year gains in passenger traffic. Through the first eight months of the year, the airport is running 2.7% ahead of 2009 with 5.4 million passengers compared with 5.26 million last year. The airport had 598,179 passengers in August compared with 578,113 in August 2009. The number of enplaned passengers on domestic, international and charter flights — those leaving the airport — was up 4.8% to 299,212 from 285,512 in 2009, while the number of deplaned passengers — those arriving at the airport — also was up 2.4% to 297,853 from 290,963. Among domestic carriers, Southwest led all airlines with 188,389 passengers in August, up from 170,737 a year ago. AirTran Airways saw the largest increase at 26.4% with 25,408 passengers in August, up from 20,094 in 2009. The United System system, which includes United Airlines and its express carriers, saw the largest year-over-year drop at 22% to 36,140 passengers in August compared with 46,332 a year ago.