Fort Smith airport traffic down to begin 2025

Fort Smith Regional Airport traffic in the first two months of 2025 is down 3.1%, driven lower by a more than 11% drop in February numbers. The early trend follows a 2024 that saw enplanements up 1.2% over 2023.

Enplanements in the first two months total 8,454, down 3.1% compared with 8,726 in the same period of 2024. January enplanements of 4,280 were better than the 4,012 in January 2024, but the February tally of 4,174 was down 11.5% compared to 4,714 in February 2024.

Airport Director Michael Griffin said winter weather was a factor in the lower February numbers. He said American Airlines, which is the only carrier at the airport, had several preemptive cancelations because of weather in Dallas. He also told airport commissioners during a Tuesday (March 18) meeting that concerns about overall economic conditions have him nervous about future enplanement numbers.

“There is just so much unknown, and we hope that doesn’t have an adverse effect on on leisure travel come summer,” Griffin said.

Enplanements at the airport in 2024 totaled 61,409, up 1.2% compared with 60,669 enplanements in 2023. The 2024 tally is down 35.8% compared with 2019 when those traveling out of the airport totaled 95,670. Enplanements fell to 38,660 in 2020.

Fort Smith enplanements were on a growth trend prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The last time enplanements topped 100,000 was in 2005 with 102,607. The enplanement record is 112,782 and was set in 1975.

American Airlines had four to five flights a day in 2021 but has reduced its schedule to three flights a day. Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines stopped its direct service to Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in July 2020.

Following are the previous 11 years of Fort Smith enplanement totals.

• 
2024: 61,409
• 
2023: 60,669
• 2022: 61,719
• 2021: 47,287
• 
2020: 38,660
• 
2019: 95,670
• 
2018: 90,501
• 
2017: 89,582
• 2016: 87,488
• 2015: 86,704
• 
2014: 92,869