Northwest Arkansas National Airport provided its final passenger number on Thursday, showing more than 1.1 million people boarded flights last year.
The exact number — 1,147,947 — was far more than the record-breaking 991,489 boardings in 2023.
XNA, which opened in late 1998, saw more than 300,000 passengers in its first full year. The airport topped 400,000 in 2002 and 500,000 in 2004.
While there were travel decreases associated with the economic downturn of 2007-2009 and during the COVID-19 pandemic, passenger growth occurs most years at XNA. In 2019, the year before the pandemic curtailed air travel nationwide, XNA exceeded 900,000 for the first time.
There’s a direct relationship between the rising volume of travel, economic growth and the region’s booming population. XNA in 2023 was the nation’s 102nd busiest commercial airport. The metropolitan area’s population ranked 98th that same year.
The XNA growth wouldn’t be possible without the airlines’ steady increases in service, and there’s no indication that the airlines won’t keep expanding.
A consultant’s comparison shows the airlines this month are selling 572 more seats a day than in January 2024, a 19% increase. The airlines are offering more flights or using bigger planes, and some airlines are doing both. The biggest increases this month are at Delta Air Lines (up 278 seats) and American Airlines (up 273).
Seats for sale will increase more in the coming months as January is one of the airport’s slowest times. The more than 3,500 seats a day this month will approach 4,200 in March and grow to 5,000 by June if the airlines don’t adjust their proposed schedules.
As part of that expansion by the airlines, they’ve added nonstop destinations.
Delta started making a daily trip to Detroit in November, and American begin flying to Philadelphia last month. Another new one — Delta to Salt Lake City — takes to the skies in February.
Further out on the calendar is a twice-a-week trip offered by Allegiant Air. Those flights start in May and will go to Gulf Shores in Alabama.
