Salt Lake City, UT (August, Date, 2023)–The numbers are in for fiscal year 2022/23, and the final count shows SLC International Airport has bypassed the previous record for total passengers recorded in a 12-month fiscal year period.
From July 2022 through June 2023, the number of passengers totaled 26,421,401, compared to the previous high of 26,203,976 in 2019. This is slightly less than the highest passenger count SLC has recorded to date in a 12-month period, which was in calendar year (Jan. to Dec.) 2019 when passengers totaled 26,808,014. The difference of about 390,000 passengers is expected to be achieved by the end of 2023, resulting in a record-breaking calendar year as well.
Perhaps the most surprising increase was in international travelers which jumped from 1,085,640 in FY ‘19 to 1,327,241 in FY ‘23. This 22% increase can be attributed to the pent-up demand from passengers wanting to fly to Europe following the pandemic. Delta responded by increasing nonstop service between SLC and London from seasonal to annually. In addition, Eurowings Discover entered the SLC market with seasonal nonstop service to Frankfurt, Germany in May 2022.
“We are on track to a full recovery from the pandemic,” said Bill Wyatt, executive director, Salt Lake City Department of Airports. “At the height of the pandemic a couple of years ago it didn’t seem possible. To see domestic travel rebound so quickly is remarkable, but to see international travel up by double digits is astounding.”
The former SLC airport, which closed in fall 2020, was built to accommodate 10 million passengers, but was operating at nearly three times its capacity in 2019. The New SLC Airport is designed to accommodate 34 million passengers at the full build out of Phase 4, which is anticipated to open in late 2026.
