APPLETON – Appleton International Airport (ATW) saw 1 million travelers arriving and departing in a single calendar year for the first time Wednesday, the airport announced in a media release.
Airport director Abe Weber said their team members and airlines were “proud” to reach the milestone. Meanwhile, Outagamie County executive Tom Nelson called the mark “one more measure of the economic health of the Fox Cities.”
The airport saw 967,867 passengers in 2023 and 846,000 passengers in 2022. While official numbers for 2024 aren’t in yet, airport officials predict they’ll see a 12% increase of 2024 passengers over 2023.
The milestone comes after ATW added additional routes for NFL away games in three cities, announced routes for NFL draft travelers and added more regular routes on three airlines, including a route to the New York City metro area. American Airlines, in particular, increased their number of seats by 58% in 2024, the airport said.
The airport is constructing a $66 million expansion to keep up with future growth. The first phase of the construction, which will add gates to the airport, is scheduled for completion in April of 2025.
Rebecca Loroff is a K-12 education reporter for the USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. She welcomes story tips and feedback. Contact her at rloroff@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: ATW sees 1 million passengers in 2024