Gerald R. Ford Airport continues growth as second largest airport in U.S.

July marks the seventh record-breaking month in a row for 2018, and the airport has seen growth in 60 of the last 67 months. July 2018 was the busiest July ever, with passenger numbers up 16.7 per cent year-over-year and makes it the second largest airport in the U.S.

Gerald R. Ford International Airport President & CEO Jim Gill said: “Our growth is a collaborative effort between our community, our airline partners, our tenants, and continued economic progression. With recent announcements like American Airlines adding non-stop service to Miami, and Frontier Airlines adding non-stop service to Phoenix Sky-Harbor, we are continuing to set records and meet the demands and needs of our travelling public.”

Airline Weekly forecasted the Ford Airport as the second fastest-growing airport in the U.S. among the 100 busiest airports for the Q3 summer peak, according to data from Diio, an aviation data, tools, and technology product. The ranking was based upon a projected 21 per cent increase in year-over-year growth.

July 2017 saw 249,268 passengers, while July 2018’s passengers exceeded that of the previous year, with 291,304 – the second largest increase ever for the month of July.

Gill said: “Our airline partners continue to invest here and are adding more services with more routes, and larger aircraft to accommodate our growing passenger traffic. We expect the record numbers and trends to continue as we wrap up summer and continue into fall.”

GFIA has invested in new facilities to accommodate the growing traffic by recently completing Phase One of the Gateway Transformation Project – an upgrade in space, retail, food and beverage, restrooms, finishes, amenities, and customer service offerings. The project’s main feature is the consolidated passenger security checkpoint which centralised and combined security screening to one main checkpoint in the Airport. Construction also included new terrazzo flooring, lighting fixtures, pre and post security business centres, a military welcome centre and kids play areas. 

Phase Two of the Gateway Transformation Project is expected to begin in the autumn of 2018 with construction taking place at the airline ticket counters, baggage claim area, and ‘front of house’ area.

Gill continued: “As we continue to grow in traffic it is imperative that our facilities keep up with our passenger demand. Our passengers keep coming back because we listen to their wants and needs, and as they do we will continue to do our part to improve our amenities, technology, customer service and infrastructure. We are excited to see what the future holds, and we hope to add more growth in the years to come.”