OREANDA-NEWS. Denver International Airport’s (DIA) nonstop international passenger traffic grew nearly 24 percent in August 2013 compared to the same time last year primarily due to United’s nonstop international service between Denver and Tokyo, and the 50-percent increase in capacity by Icelandair for the summer. Traffic to Mexico City increased with Volaris operating once-weekly service, and United Airlines more than doubled its capacity to the market. United Airlines also increased Denver-Calgary capacity by 26 percent in August 2013 compared to August 2012.

Overall August passenger traffic at DIA declined 5 percent in 2013 compared to August 2012. A total of 4,827,942 passengers passed through DIA in August 2013, compared to the record-breaking August 2012 that saw 5,083,518 passengers. The year-to-date total decreased by 1.7 percent from 35,783,114 passengers during the same period in 2012, to 35,183,343 passengers this year.

“International passenger traffic was again a bright spot for Denver International Airport in August, including an additional flight added to Cozumel,” said Manager of Aviation Kim Day. “We have seen some major capacity decreases by airlines, most notably Frontier, which has had a negative impact on our overall passenger traffic numbers. However, our overall network has stayed strong, as Denver International Airport served 182 nonstop destinations in August 2013, an increase of seven destinations over August 2012. Those new city pairs included Greensboro, South Carolina; Wilmington, Delaware; Fort McMurray, Canada; and of course, Tokyo, Japan.”

Also in August, mail, freight and express cargo operations saw a 7.2-percent decrease, from 45,531,933 pounds of cargo handled in 2012 to 42,259,169 pounds of cargo handled in 2013. There was a decrease in overall airport flight operations, from 56,487 in 2012 to 52,111 in 2013.