The three airlines that inaugurated the Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) with domestic flights, Aeroméxico, Volaris and VivaAerobus, transported from March 21 to 31 a total of 13,716 passengers in the six destinations that they connect (Cancún, Tijuana and Monterrey were those of Greater demand).
With this figure, the new airport appeared for the first time in the monthly reports of the Federal Civil Aviation Agency (AFAC).
The passengers served during the eleven days represented 7% of the 196,518 that departed from the Mexico City International Airport (AICM) throughout March to the paradisiacal Cancun, which is the busiest route in the country.
Despite the fact that the first Conviasa international flight from Caracas, Venezuela also arrived on the day of its opening, the data was not reported.
Of the 67 flights that took off from the AIFA in March, the one with the most passengers (1,803) was the one headed for Monterrey, by VivaAerobus. While of the 66 flights that returned to AIFA, the one with the most demand was the one that returned from Cancun (1,857), which is a Volaris route.
As a preview of the March numbers, VivaAerobus had already shared that its AIFA-Monterrey flight was the one that reported the highest occupancy factor: 96.6% (the one with the lowest occupancy was the Guadalajara-AIFA flight: 50.6 percent).
According to AFAC data, the AIFA-Cancún-AIFA operation added 3,657 passengers, the AIFA-Tijuana-AIFA (run by Volaris) added 3,323 passengers, the AIFA-Monterrey-AIFA 3,064 passengers, the AIFA-Guadalajara-AIFA (by VivaAerobus) 1,726 passengers, the AIFA-Mérida-AIFA (of Aeroméxico) had 1,503 passengers and the AIFA-Villahermosa-AIFA (of Aeroméxico) 443 passengers.
During April, the three airlines maintained their daily frequency in their operations, although Aeroméxico directors have said that they are reviewing the schedule of their operation to Villahermosa because it has not had the expected demand.
In addition, this company is the only one that has reported that as of May 1 they will add a flight to Puerto Vallarta with four weekly frequencies.
Even with the challenge that ground connectivity represents to AIFA, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said last week: We are asking airlines to use the Felipe Ángeles airport because the Mexico City airport is already saturated, it is public and notorious , the new airport has very good facilities, a first class service, they save about 45 minutes in paperwork from the time they arrive until they board and it costs less because the airlines are charged less.