Sacramento International Airport Experiencing Record Number of Passengers

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - More people flew in and out of Sacramento International Airport in January, February and March than any other year in the airport's history.

Close to 2.6 million people traveled during the first 3 months of 2018, a 12.1% increase over the same period in 2017. SMF is on pace to serve 11.5 million passengers in 2018.

For the 2017 calendar year, 10.9 million passengers flew in and out of SMF. The previous record was 10.7 million in 2007.

The Director of Airports, John Wheat, said: "We are seeing unmistakable momentum which we expect to continue through the end of the year. We are very grateful to our airline partners, airport employees, and our customers for helping to make this happen."

Airport administrators attribute the growth to more nonstop destinations, more seats available on existing flights and a better regional economy.

Several new nonstop routes are being added to Sacramento International Airport. JetBlue's seasonal services to Boston start May 3, Southwest's daily service to Orlando starts May 6, Air Canada's daily service to Vancouver begins May 17 and Alaska Airlines starts its seasonal service to Cabo San Lucas May 26.

SMF offers more than 155 daily nonstop flights on 11 domestic and international carriers.