Whole passenger site visitors on the 4 airports serving Los Angeles County has lastly neared 90% restoration to pre-pandemic ranges, led by sturdy development in worldwide passengers coming via Los Angeles Worldwide Airport, in response to July figures from the airports’ governing authorities.
Practically 8.8 million passengers went via the gates at LAX, Ontario Worldwide, Hollywood-Burbank and Lengthy Seashore airports in July, up 13.5% from the identical month a yr in the past and solely 10.8% in need of pre-pandemic July 2019.
That represents one of the best displaying in passenger tallies because the pandemic started, with the strongest year-over-year development – 15% – occurring at LAX. That development was buoyed by a 24% improve in worldwide passengers from final yr because the lifting of pandemic journey restrictions ushered in a world growth in worldwide air journey.
“We reached a significant milestone in June and July when our worldwide passenger site visitors surpassed 2 million friends every month,” mentioned Justin Erbacci, the exiting chief govt of Los Angeles World Airports, the town company that runs LAX.
In response to a press release late final week from Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, Erbacci is stepping down from his put up efficient Oct. 6 to grow to be chief govt of the airports division of NEOM, a large new metropolis being deliberate in northwest Saudi Arabia by the Saudi royal household. Board of Airport Commissioners member Beatrice Hsu will probably be stepping in as interim chief govt.
The information has been considerably much less favorable on the home entrance at LAX, the place passenger tallies have been up solely 12% in July from a yr in the past. With a view to keep away from a repeat of delays and cancellations that plagued the 2022 summer time season, many airways scaled again deliberate flight additions this summer time, Erbacci beforehand advised the Enterprise Journal.
In consequence, home passenger counts at LAX have registered solely a slight enchancment when measured in opposition to pre-pandemic totals, with July’s whole of about 5 million nonetheless 15% under the identical month 4 years in the past.
The image on the three regional airports was combined, with Ontario Worldwide persevering with its sturdy restoration, adopted by Lengthy Seashore. However Hollywood-Burbank Airport’s passenger counts have been down barely in July from each final yr and 2019.
Ontario Worldwide was the primary native airport to get better totally from the pandemic final yr, and since then passenger counts have continued to speed up. The 582,000 passengers that went via that airport in July was up 12% from final yr and 18% from pre-pandemic 2019.
“The current traveler knowledge is gorgeous to say the least and displays the sturdy sense of confidence amongst our airline companions and clients,” mentioned Atif Elkadi, chief govt of the Ontario Worldwide Airport Authority. “Whereas different airports within the area would possibly wrestle to regain their place available in the market, we at Ontario Worldwide proceed to ship a world-class, hassle-free expertise to vacationers each residing in and visiting the fast-growing Inland Empire, and the air journey market is responding positively.”
Lengthy Seashore Airport has skilled a bit extra of a roller-coaster trip this yr when it comes to passenger counts, although July was positively on the upswing. Roughly 341,000 individuals went via the gates at that municipal airport in July, up 11% from the identical month final yr and practically 7% from pre-pandemic July 2019.
“The summer time journey season has been sizzling at Lengthy Seashore Airport,” mentioned Airport Director Cynthia Guidry. “July was our busiest month to date this yr and our greatest improve in passenger site visitors because the pandemic, with an increasing number of vacationers selecting to fly out of our handy airport.”
On the flip facet, July was a considerably weak month for passenger journey at Hollywood-Burbank. The overall of 533,000 passengers was down greater than 2.5% from July of final yr and down 1.6% from the identical month in pre-pandemic 2019.
Cargo woes
Whereas passenger tallies have been usually taking off in July on the 4 airports serving Los Angeles County, cargo tonnage continued to plunge, with the cumulative whole sliding under pre-pandemic 2019 ranges.
The 4 airports mixed dealt with 258,000 metric tons in July, down practically 14% from final yr and a pair of% from the identical month in 2019.
Los Angeles Worldwide and Ontario Worldwide airports collectively deal with roughly 98% of the cargo passing via the 4 airports.
At LAX, cargo tonnage dropped practically 13% in July to 198,000 in comparison with a yr in the past, although that tally was practically 3% larger than the identical month in 2019.
That’s a a lot totally different image than two years in the past, when surges in pandemic-related deliveries and cargo diversions from the clogged ports of Los Angeles and Lengthy Seashore pushed the overall tonnage at LAX practically 30% above pre-pandemic July 2019.
“Our cargo quantity is leveling off at numbers much like 2019, after we noticed super, non permanent development through the pandemic on account of airways repurposing passenger planes for cargo, challenges with seaports and the transport of (private protecting tools) merchandise,” Erbacci mentioned final month.
At Ontario, the cargo pattern was fully down in July, dropping 17% to 56,000 metric tons in comparison with the identical month final yr and falling greater than 12% from 2019.
