Edmonton Airport expects to reach 7.8 million passengers in 2024

It’s the busiest time of the year as the Edmonton International Airport is projected to reach 7.8 million passengers by the end of 2024 as they approach the Christmas rush.

Roughly 96 per cent of their pre-pandemic level, Edmonton Airport is closing in on exceeding its passenger volume numbers and this is welcoming news.

“That just goes to show that people really are wanting to be up on those planes again and getting that travel bag back after the pandemic,” said Erin Isfeld, with the Edmonton International Airport.

The airport is estimated to handle 25,000 passengers daily during the holiday season, but despite the record number, why does the airport still have trouble reaching the volume they saw back in 2019?

“There were only four airports during the pandemic here in Canada who are able to operate those international flights. And we were restricted on a lot of the destinations that we were able to go to,” said Isfeld.

With the addition of Houston direct flight, that may be a ticket to have a busier airport next year.

CityNews spoke with passengers who say they want more direct flights from Edmonton going to different international destinations.

“I wish … I think for my age, it’s more convenient from Edmonton to the Philippines direct flight.”

“I do that’ll be great, that’ll be awesome.”

“That’ll be nice, I think it’ll be cool if I have a direct flight from here to Manila.”

And some passenger we spoke to, while they have a direct flight from their destination, they would love to see more in the future. 

“Well it’s a lot more convenient absolutely, takes less time and I think it’s less stressful.”

“Of course, I wish that directly … mostly I’m going to Montreal. I prefer to have a direct flight.”

Edmonton Airport currently has 50 non-stop destinations with the majority in certain parts of the U.S., two of them being international flights to Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Isfeld says adding more direct flights is very possible in the future.

“This is a constant conversation that we are having with all of our airline partners, we’re really working together for the passenger to ensure that we can deliver all of these non-stop flights that they are looking for,” said Isfeld.

While they are close to reaching the pre-pandemic level, Isfeld says with the addition of Houston and two direct flights by WestJet for spring and summer next year, they may see a surge of passengers in 2025.