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The Houston Airport System (HAS) handled 62.5 million passengers in the 12 months ending April ’25. That represents a 2.6 percent increase over the 61.0 million handled over the same period last year and a continued improvement over pre-pandemic levels of travel. Domestic and international travel accounted for 49.5 million and 13.1 million passengers, respectively. 

While travel was up for the 12-month period, it dropped year-over-year for the month of April, falling 4.3 percent from April ‘24. Domestic travel dropped 5.7 percent to 3.9 million passengers while international travel increased, seeing a 1.6 percent uptick to 1.0 million. The total number of passengers declined at both airports, with counts at the William P. Hobby Airport (HOU) dropping 8.6 percent and counts at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) down 2.9 percent.

Air cargo through Houston Airports remained steady, with the 12-month total slightly increasing by 1.6 percent. Although down from the August ’22 peak, cargo is still well above half a million metric tons for the 12 months ending in April ’25.

The Houston Airports System is continuing to expand its domestic service with the announcement of new routes for the summer. IAH began daily flights to Salina, Kansas on May 2, and flights from HOU to Gulf Shores, Alabama will begin in August. 

The Houston City Council recently approved a $20 million contract for a taxiway connecting Houston Spaceport with Ellington Airport. Per Jim Szczesniak, City of Houston’s Director of Aviation, Ellington Airport and the Spaceport are already “supporting more than 8,550 jobs and generating a total economic output of $2 billion annually,” and this ordinance will spur additional economic development. Construction is scheduled to break ground at the end of the summer and be completed in ‘26, according to the Houston Business Journal.

For more news and information, visit fly2houston.com.

Prepared by Greater Houston Partnership Research

Clara Richardson
Analyst, Research
Greater Houston Partnership
crichardson@houston.org

Colin Baker
Manager of Economic Research
Greater Houston Partnership
bakerc@houston.org