CLEVELAND, Ohio – After months of steady growth in 2024, passenger volume at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport dropped significantly in October, down more than 7% over the same period a year ago.
Airport director Bryant Francis attributed the decrease in part to cutbacks from Spirit Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy protection this month.
The carrier is down to a single daily flight, to Fort Lauderdale, from Cleveland Hopkins.
October is typically a relatively quiet month for air travel, sandwiched between the busy summer and holiday travel periods.
But this October was even quieter than expected, with 848,460 passengers – down 7.3% from October 2023.
“Despite October coming in a bit lower than anticipated, we are still gearing up for a busy holiday travel season to close out the year,” said Francis, in a statement.
Year-to-date, passenger volumes remain well above last year – with 8.6 million travelers through October, a 4.5% increase over the same period in 2023.
The airport is still on pace to welcome 10.25 million passengers this year, the most since 2008, when Cleveland Hopkins was a hub for Continental Airlines.