Passenger traffic at Winnipeg's airport almost back to pre-pandemic volumes

Almost 4.1 million passengers travelled in and out of Richardson International Airport in 2023 as traffic at Winnipeg's airport came close to returning to pre-pandemic volumes.

The Winnipeg Airports Authority announced Tuesday that passenger volumes last year climbed back to 91 per cent of the passenger traffic in 2019, the last full year before COVID-19 severely disrupted air travel.

Approximately 4.5 million people flew in and out of Richardson in 2019. That figure fell to 1.3 million in 2020 and then 1.2 million in 2021, the first full year of the pandemic.

WAA president and CEO Nick Hays said in a statement new airlines and routes helped Richardson traffic increasein 2023.

Porter Airlines began flying in and out of Winnipeg last year, while WestJet added direction service between the Manitoba capital and Atlanta.

Passenger volumes could bounce back further this year. In January, United Airlines announced it will resume daily service between Winnipeg and both Denver and Chicago.