On November 25th, 2024, multiple sources reported that representatives of 13 different airlines operating flights to and from Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport
(LAS) will convene in the city to hear a proposal from airport management regarding a potential expansion project for the airport. This modernization project will allow the airport to handle rapidly growing passenger demand over the coming years while an additional airport is being built south of the city which should help handle additional demand over the coming years.
Over the past few years, Harry Reid Airport has observed an astronomical increase in passenger numbers, hitting a record 57.6 million in 2023. After just nine months of 2024, passenger numbers are set to reach even higher record levels, with passenger numbers up more than 2% over last year, according to a breakdown from the Las Vegas Review-Journal. As a result, the city has decided that a new airport, one set to be a “reliever airport,” is necessary and will be built in the Ivanpah Valley over the coming decade.
As airlines operating flights to the airport, many of which have drastically expanded their operations at LAS over the past few years, the decision to expand or not expand the facility will undoubtedly impact their ability to achieve sustained growth in the Las Vegas market over the coming years. With the post-pandemic rise in remote work, which allows passengers to “soft vacation” and create long weekends by working a day or two remotely, demand for travel to weekend destinations like Las Vegas has skyrocketed.
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An airport expansion could help address multiple of the airport’s chronic issues
One of the largest issues facing Las Vegas’ principal airport is a lack of parking availability, with the vast majority of garages filled up to capacity, especially around some of the highest-demand weekends of the year. Despite recent steps to mitigate this congestion, such as offering reserved parking in advance and increasing parking prices. The new expansion project could help address this issue.
Photo: Markus Mainka l Shutterstock
The upcoming meeting will also review a proposal to expand the number of gates at Terminal 1 from 39 up to 65, and would create two additional multimodal centers that could add additional parking capacity. This would further allow the airport to grow while the new Las Vegas airport is still being built.
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At least one airline is very excited about the expansion project
Allegiant Air, an ultra-low-cost carrier which operates flights to more than 60 destinations from the airport, is certainly excited about the potential expansion. In a statement to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the company’s CEO Greg Anderson had the following words to share regarding the expansion project:
“We’re bringing a unique customer into Las Vegas. And being the hometown airline, that’s something we’re really proud of and we want to continue to strengthen our footprint here in Vegas.”
Photo: Artistic Operations | Shutterstock
With eyes towards the future, Anderson indicated his concern over gate constraints that could prevent the carrier from expanding in the future. No vote is anticipated at the upcoming meeting, and it is unclear if one will occur in the coming months.