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McAllen International Airport is flying high, at least according to city officials.
The airport reached a record number of travelers in July, soaring to a total of 114,694 passengers and an 8.7% increase from its previous record in June.
Year-to-date numbers also look promising in McAllen with a 23% traffic increase from 2023 to 2024, and a 70% increase in flights.
McAllen officials in a news release Monday attributed the increase in travel to three new air carriers and four new nonstop routes from McAllen in 2024.
“McAllen International Airport has set records in four of the past five years, however this year we have taken it above and beyond,” McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos said. “We’re so thankful that more travelers are flying nonstop from McAllen, especially taking advantage of the new nonstop routes.”
This comes after the McAllen airport has new nonstop flights from McAllen to Austin via Delta Air Lines, to Mexico City via Aeromexico, to Cancun via Volaris and to Tampa-St. Petersburg through Allegiant Air.
But it’s the Mexico City flights that may be attracting much of the activity.
“McAllen International Airport has seen a high demand for all nine nonstop flights, but especially flights to Mexico City with Aeromexico, Austin with Delta and to Dallas with American Airlines,” the city said in the release.
City Manager Roy Rodriguez spoke highly of the airport’s services for residents who are more international flyers.
“Our region’s travelers love connecting with the people and places important to them,” Rodriguez said in the release. “McAllen International Airport goes above and beyond to make that a great experience.”
McAllen also pointed to $7.4 million in grant funding to expand the airport. According to Director of Aviation Jeremy Santoscoy, the city is assessing airport needs with stakeholders “who want to make sure that any decisions with the expansion are thorough and are the best options for our travelers and airlines including those in the future.”
In Harlingen, Valley International Airport also posted a year-to-date increase, from 381,881 in 2023 to 440,042 in 2024 for a 15% jump.
The Harlingen airport additionally saw a slight increase from June to July of this year, from 42,169 to 42,740.
It should be noted, however, that Harlingen’s airport uses fiscal years when recording data while McAllen uses calendar years.
The Brownsville South Padre Island International Airport recorded 34,661 passengers in June and 35,918 in July for an increase of over 3%.
That airport has seen the highest YTD increase of the three airports in the Valley with a 31% jump from 2023 to 2024, from 157,423 to 207,278.
Valley Morning Star staff writer Fernando Del Valle contributed to this report.
