The growth trend returned in March as Spring Break travelers returned to the sky. More than 744,00 passengers traveled through RDU that month, a 4.3 percent increase over March 2009. In the first quarter of the year, 1.9 million passengers traveled through RDU, up 1.3 percent from the same period in 2009.
At the April Airport Authority Board meeting, Airport Director John Brantley announced that aircraft load factors, or the percentage of seats filled on flights, were near 80 percent. The high percentage means that people are buying nearly all available tickets for sale on flights from RDU.
Air Cargo Increases
Gains have also been recorded in the amount of air cargo moving through RDU. Cargo is one of the best indicators of the return of economic growth as it is the first to show decline and the last to return to growth.
In January, air cargo grew by 3.5 percent, to a total capacity of 8.3 million tons moving through the airport. Growth increased in February to 16.7 million tons, an increase of 11.5 million tons over February 2010.
Other positive signs include a 7.7 percent increase in the number of taxicab trips provided by RDU Taxi, the official airport taxi company. |
