Passenger traffic at St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport rose 28 percent in May over the same month last year, airport officials said.
The airport served 83,595 passengers, marking its busiest May since 2004.
Through the first five months of 2013, the airport served 435,575 passengers, an increase of 11 percent over January through May of last year. Allegiant Air accounts for 90 percent of the passengers at St. Pete-Clearwater, and the airline just began service to its 25th destination, Asheville, N.C..
The growth is largely due to Allegiant’s addition of new destinations, larger capacity on its aircraft and the growth in tourism in the St. Pete-Clearwater market, officials said. Allegiant began service at St. Pete-Clearwater in 2006 and has added destinations every year.
“Our recent re-branding launched our slogan “Tampa Bay The Easy Way,” and Allegiant is a vital partner in making travel easy and affordable for visitors and our local community," airport director Noah Lagos said.