Surge of passenger traffic at Columbia Metropolitan Airport suggests 2024 could be record-breaking year

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - The Columbia Metropolitan Airport (CAE) said they have experienced a consistent increase in the amount of travelers using the airport during 2024, setting them up to potentially break the record for the most traffic they’ve seen in 10 years.

The airport said they hosted 646,013 passengers between Jan. 1, 2024 and June 30, 2024, with May alone providing 123,008 of those travelers. The significant surge in May caused the airport to exceed their previous record of 122,099 passengers in one month, which they set back in May 2019.

The airport said their 2024 progress is on track to match or even surpass the 1.3 million passengers they served in 2019, the highest traffic they had seen in 10 years.

“Historically, we see a dip in passenger traffic at the start of the year with an uptick starting in late Q1,” said CAE President and CEO, Mike Gula. “This year, it has been a consistent increase of travelers from January 1 to today.”

CAE credits this increase to their efforts to re-establish and surpass their pre-pandemic passenger traffic by improving efficiencies and updating their amenities. They also said additional air service and route options played a factor in the passenger surge.

The airport currently provides over 26 daily flights to 10 major airports including Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas/Fort Worth, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington D.C.

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