CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Several North Carolina airports are breaking records for number of passengers. 

What You Need To Know

  • Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Raleigh-Durham International Airport had record-breaking numbers in 2024

  • Asheville Regional Airport had its second-highest number of passengers in the airport history

  • CLT frequent passenger Dalton Sigmon is not surprised about the record-breaking numbers

  • CLT continues construction to accommodate the increased number of passengers

Airports, including Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Raleigh-Durham International Airport, reached this milestone. 

Charlotte Douglas had 58.8 million arriving and departing passengers in 2024. The majority of them were taking connecting flights. 

RDU served a record 15.5 million passengers, making it the busiest year for the airport. 

Asheville Regional Airport had its second-highest number of passengers in the airport’s history in 2024 with 2,174,125 travelers. The airport said there was a 3% dip following disruptions due to Helene. 

Dalton Sigmon is a frequent flyer, traveling through Charlotte Douglas International twice a week. This routine started for the home inspector last year.

“I had never really flown before, and then I went into flying twice a week, so it was definitely different. I've not been in a place like this with this many people,” Sigmon said. 

Hearing about the record number of passengers aligns with the heavy traffic Sigmon has experienced at this airport. 

“That’s not surprising to me, just the sheer amount of people that I see flying out, you know, day to day,” Sigmon said. 

The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery in Charlotte views the record in a positive light. HMSHost, in partnership with OMB, opened the brewery’s second location at the airport last year. In November, the OMB Biergarten opened in Concourse D. 

“When flights are delayed, we are actually busier,” OMB’s Chief Operating Manager Jim Birch said. “We actually expect our volume of sales in the airport to double versus last year with most of the volume coming from the beer garden.”

Birch said the business at the airport also benefits their other Charlotte locations. 

“Someone visiting, or just passing through Charlotte, gets an idea of the restaurants and some of the local businesses that they would see if they left the airport. And so that's great for us. It gives us kind of bigger exposure,” Birch said. 

The 2024 record-breaking passenger numbers for Charlotte Douglas International are a 10% increase from 2023. 

According to the airport, international travel at CLT saw a 13% increase. 

Sigmon said a busier airport can bring some challenges. 

“Sometimes you'll be waiting upwards of an hour. You know, it's rare, but it happens, and it could really mess up your travel plans,” Sigmon said. 

However, for Sigmon, who has TSA pre-check, this growth is positive. 

“The airport has grown massively within the past, you know, a couple months that I've noticed, so TSA pre-check is a good thing,” Sigmon said. 

With more passengers, CLT is working on expanding. According to the airport, this year TSA Checkpoint 2 is expected to open, and the terminal lobby expansion is expected to be completed. 

Currently, construction of the new runway is in its early stages.