Summary
- San Antonio International Airport is experiencing significant growth.
- The airport has seen record-breaking passenger numbers and announced a new long-haul international flight.
- There will be over 300 flights to international destinations from the airport next May.
San Antonio International Airport (SAT) has been in the headlines a few times this month due to record-breaking passenger numbers and a historic announcement of a new long-haul service. The airport has experienced major growth this year and was reportedly ranked among the top 10 airports in the US for the most seamless travel experience.
Flights to international destinations from SAT are also increasing. Four airlines currently offer nonstop international service, but next year, a fifth airline will come onto the scene, adding more available seat miles (ASMs) to the airport’s records.
Flights to Mexico
SAT’s route network connects San Antonio to more than 40 cities, with 13 carriers serving the airport. None of the US legacy carriers operate flights to destinations outside of the US, leaving Aeromexico, Southwest Airlines, Sun Country Airlines, Viva Aerobus, and Volaris to address the demand currently to five cities in Mexico.
Flights to Cancun International Airport (CUN) are operated by Southwest year-round and seasonally by Sun Country. Volaris is the sole airline to offer flights to Guadalajara International Airport (GDL) but competes with Viva Aerobus and Aeromexico on flights to Mexico City International Airport (MEX). Viva Aerobus, on the other hand, handles flights to Guanajuato International Airport (BJX) and Monterrey International Airport (MTY).
Photo: San Antonio International Airport
In May 2024, just under 300 flights will be scheduled between SAT Mexico, but Sun Country will not operate flights to Cancun, and Viva Aerobus will not have any flights scheduled to BJX or MTY, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
|
Destination |
Airline |
Equipment |
Total Flights |
Total Seats |
Total ASMs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Cancun International Airport (CUN) |
Southwest Airlines |
Boeing 737-700 |
8 |
1,144 |
1,065,064 |
|
Guadalajara International Airport (GDL) |
Volaris |
Airbus A321neo |
62 |
14,632 |
10,096,080 |
|
Mexico City International Airport (MEX) |
Aeromexico |
Embraer E190 |
124 |
12,276 |
8,544,096 |
|
Viva Aerobus |
Airbus A320 |
52 |
9,672 |
6,731,712 |
|
|
Volaris |
Airbus A320neo |
52 |
9,672 |
6,731,712 |
|
|
Total |
298 |
47,396 |
33,168,664 |
||
A first time for everything
Next year, Mexico will not be the only international destination as German leisure airline Condor announced that it would inaugurate flights to Frankfurt. Condor will operate the Airbus A330neo on the route, significantly increasing total international ASMs to and from SAT. The service makes history for San Antonio, as it will be the airport’s first European, and long-haul, flight.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg spoke about the new service on Thursday.
“This a spectacular win for San Antonio. This is the first time people in San Antonio will be able to fly from SAT to Europe nonstop and vice-versa. Germany is where San Antonio has the most demand for travel in Europe because of the cultural, historic, tourism, military and business ties.”
San Antonio business leaders pushed for direct flights to European destinations last month and were willing to pay millions to make it possible, according to mysanantonio.com. Private sector executives reportedly raised over $2 million in a fund last year to pay the expenses to support a new nonstop flight.
Photo: Condor
The money raised will be worth it as SAT expects Condor’s Frankfurt service will result in millions of dollars of economic impact.
“SAT’s first-ever trans-Atlantic service on Condor will have an annual $34 million estimated economic impact to our region,” Nirenberg said.
Breaking records
This all comes as SAT said it was ranked the fifth airport in the US for the most stress-free travel experience after reporting record-breaking passenger levels during the Labor Day holiday weekend. Around 160,000 travelers passed through the airport over the weekend, representing a 13% increase in passengers compared to 2019 and 10% more than last year.
Sources: Cirium, mysanantonio.com