Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport set an all-time single-month passenger record in May. And more records could be on the way.
While not hitting a record, Washington Dulles International Airport saw a strong month, as well.
The two airports are “bustling with people and activities,” Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority president/CEO Jack Potter said at the organization’s July 17 board of directors meeting.
For May, there were a total of 1.19 million enplanements at Reagan National, up 3.5 percent from a year before and 2.6 percent higher than budget projections. The total monthly passenger count of 2.4 million at the airport, which includes both those departing and arriving, was the highest in National’s 83-year history.
At Dulles, the monthly enplanement total of 1.24 million exceeded that of National but fell short of a record. The airport did, however, set an all-time high for the month of May in terms of international travelers, around 970,000.
Counting both airports, the 2.43 million enplanements for the month was up 7 percent from a year before and above budgeted projections.
June also could break some records, but figures were not yet available. Chryssa Westerlund, the airport’s executive vice president and chief revenue officer, said the authority “remains on track for another record-setting year.”
What is now Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport opened in 1941, with Dulles opening in 1962. The all-time single-year passenger record at National was set last year, at 25.5 million; the all-time record at Dulles was 27 million in 2005, when Independence Air was briefly challenging the dominance of United Airlines.
