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It was a record year for the Kelowna International Airport.
YLW served 1,732,113 passengers in 2016, an increase of 8.7% or 140,000 passengers from their 2015 numbers.
“This is great news not only for YLW, but also the entire region,” said Airport Director, Sam Samaddar. “The increase in passenger traffic means an increase in tourism, a boost to the regional economy and additional support for our local businesses.”
Nearly every month in 2016 saw tremendous growth and December ended up being YLW’s busiest month ever with 166,537 passengers walking through the airport’s doors.
“The reason for the increase is in large part due to the launch of new routes and airlines, along with increased capacity on current popular destinations,” added Samaddar. “The Okanagan’s status as a four-season destination doesn’t hurt either, with world-class skiing, wineries and agri-tourism drawing travellers to the region.”
The growth isn’t expected to stop now with an additional 3% growth expected for 2017.
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