Portland International Jetport experienced positive passenger growth last year, reporting that 1,675,978 passengers used the airport in 2013, an increase of 3.7% over 2012, and marking an end to four years of declining passenger numbers.Â
Paul Bradbury, airport director, reported the jetport carried 59,255 more passengers in 2013 and said a big contributor was the addition of Southwest Airlines as a carrier in April 2013.
Southwest Airlines will begin offering new Saturday nonstop service to Chicago’s Midway Airport starting June 14, according to a press release announcing the jetport’s 2013 performance. The new service will offer connections to 64 cities with more than 200 daily flights. Southwest also plans to add a fourth daily nonstop flight to Baltimore in early June.
Bradbury attributed the additional flights to increased use of the jetport, which completed a $75 million expansion in 2012, and the growing demand for travel to and from Portland that has been spurred by the jetport’s marketing efforts to build a balanced mix of business and pleasure travelers.