Air travel looks very different now than it did just a few years ago when the coronavirus pandemic grounded folks around the world, putting a halt to travel for both leisure and business.
In 2020, passenger traffic on U.S. airlines was at its lowest since the mid-1980s, with just 369 million passengers. In 2021, the U.S. started to get back to more normal air travel levels, and by 2022, the country was up to 853 million airline passengers. By the looks of it, 2023 is likely to outpace those numbers and return to pre-pandemic levels—nearly 3 million people flew in and out of U.S. airports daily as of April 2023, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration's Air Traffic Organization.
When you're at the airport, shuffling around with your roller bag, backpack, neck pillow, and water bottle among the thousands of other passengers doing the same, you're probably not too concerned with more than your flight. Is it on time? Who will be sitting next to you? Did your checked bag make it onto the plane?
But when you're not in flight mode, you may be wondering where all of the other folks at your local airport are traveling to. To answer that question, Stacker compiled a list of the most common domestic flights from Philadelphia International using data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Destinations are ranked by total passengers from October 2022 to September 2023.
Read on to find out if your flight patterns are similar to your fellow Philadelphia International travelers.
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#20. Palm Beach International (West Palm Beach/Palm Beach, FL)
- Passengers: 200,947 (1.7% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 157,957
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 42,206
--- #3. Southwest Airlines: 780
Pete Niesen // Shutterstock
2 / 20#19. San Francisco International (San Francisco, CA)
- Passengers: 210,996 (1.8% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 160,692
--- #2. United Air Lines: 50,232
marchello74 // Shutterstock
3 / 20#18. Chicago Midway International (Chicago, IL)
- Passengers: 222,475 (1.9% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. Southwest Airlines: 179,910
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 42,100
--- #3. Delta Air Lines: 328
#17. Luis Munoz Marin International (San Juan, PR)
- Passengers: 226,404 (1.9% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. Frontier Airlines: 98,379
--- #2. American Airlines: 66,716
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 61,306
#16. George Bush Intercontinental/Houston (Houston, TX)
Vladimir Mucibabic // Shutterstock
6 / 20#15. Detroit Metro Wayne County (Detroit, MI)
- Passengers: 247,108 (2.1% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. Delta Air Lines: 133,790
--- #2. Spirit Air Lines: 47,869
--- #3. PSA Airlines: 30,016
randy andy // Shutterstock
7 / 20#14. Harry Reid International (Las Vegas, NV)
- Passengers: 271,968 (2.3% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 158,282
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 57,379
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 54,791
Brian Wilson Photography // Shutterstock
8 / 20#13. Nashville International (Nashville, TN)
- Passengers: 288,030 (2.5% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. Southwest Airlines: 92,648
--- #2. American Airlines: 76,305
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 42,493
AevanStock // Shutterstock
9 / 20#12. Tampa International (Tampa, FL)
- Passengers: 331,606 (2.9% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 201,728
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 115,571
--- #3. Southwest Airlines: 13,805
Andrew Zarivny // Shutterstock
10 / 20#11. Denver International (Denver, CO)
Strike First // Shutterstock
11 / 20#10. Los Angeles International (Los Angeles, CA)
- Passengers: 398,522 (3.4% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 347,678
--- #2. Spirit Air Lines: 50,317
--- #3. Southwest Airlines: 268
Nate Hovee // Shutterstock
12 / 20#9. Phoenix Sky Harbor International (Phoenix, AZ)
- Passengers: 407,891 (3.5% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 381,485
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 22,004
--- #3. Southwest Airlines: 1,857
mariakray // Shutterstock
13 / 20#8. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
- Passengers: 408,515 (3.5% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 163,271
--- #2. Spirit Air Lines: 146,779
--- #3. Frontier Airlines: 88,553
#7. Charlotte Douglas International (Charlotte, NC)
- Passengers: 448,979 (3.9% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 388,426
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 59,968
--- #3. Delta Air Lines: 273
lunamarina // Shutterstock
15 / 20#6. Logan International (Boston, MA)
Sean Pavone // Shutterstock
16 / 20#5. Miami International (Miami, FL)
- Passengers: 494,034 (4.2% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 379,692
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 61,973
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 52,097
marchello74 // Shutterstock
17 / 20#4. Chicago O'Hare International (Chicago, IL)
- Passengers: 535,127 (4.6% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 323,399
--- #2. United Air Lines: 207,546
--- #3. Republic Airline: 3,980
#3. Dallas/Fort Worth International (Dallas/Fort Worth, TX)
- Passengers: 542,515 (4.7% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 443,075
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 50,776
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 48,664
#2. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (Atlanta, GA)
- Passengers: 811,616 (7.0% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. Delta Air Lines: 438,554
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 132,637
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 76,363
Songquan Deng // Shutterstock
20 / 20#1. Orlando International (Orlando, FL)
- Passengers: 940,365 (8.1% of all passengers)
- Top carriers:
--- #1. American Airlines: 367,449
--- #2. Frontier Airlines: 352,246
--- #3. Spirit Air Lines: 185,155
This story features data reporting by Rob Powell, writing by Jaimie Etkin, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 199 metros.
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