Peoria Int'l Airport Nearly Breaks Passenger Record!




I was wrong, but not by much.

The Peoria Journal Star posted an article this afternoon revealing not only a record passenger tally for December 2024, but a near record for the entire year!

I probably made fun of them sufficiently that they finally realized Peoria has an airport with scheduled commercial airline service, and that it is vital a local newspaper of record needs to report happenings on a consistent basis if it wants to be credible. 

Last year, Peoria International Airport nearly broke its all-time passenger record. In 2019, it handled 689,416 passengers. In 2024, it handled 687,601, a difference of just 0.23 percent. 

One record did fall. In December, PIA handled 66,150 passengers, more than any previous total for that month. In fact, this is nearly 10,000 more than the previous December record, which was in 2019. 

United Express' new daily Denver nonstops begin March 30, 2025. Barring unforeseen calamity, this new service should help PIA break its 2019 record this year, which will be easy to do. 

- David P. Jordan




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