Ontario airport passenger count fell 6.2% in August while cargo tonnage rose 3.3%
The airport authority reported 606,809 passengers in August and attributed the decline to airlines cutting capacity because of fuel prices. International traffic for the year through August was up 30.8%.
Ontario International Airport counted 606,809 passengers in August, down 6.2% from 646,847 in August 2025, the Ontario International Airport Authority said in a release issued Sept. 24.
The authority attributed the decline to airlines reducing capacity because of higher fuel prices.
Domestic passengers totaled 554,242 in August, a 6.5% decrease from a year earlier, according to a table in the release. International passengers totaled 52,567, a 2.6% decrease.
Eight-month totals
For January through August, the airport handled 4,692,801 passengers, up 0.3% from 4,672,257 in the same period of 2025, the authority reported.
International traffic made up the increase. The airport served 455,952 international passengers in the eight months, up 30.8% from 348,600. The authority said the growth reflected added flights serving Mexico and Taiwan.
Domestic traffic for the eight months was 4,236,849, down 2.2% from 4,330,657.
"Ontario International continues to strengthen its position as Southern California's airport of choice, and the tremendous growth we're seeing in international travel is especially exciting," Atif Elkadi, the authority's chief executive officer, said in the release.
The carriers with the largest shares of August passengers were Southwest Airlines at 35.3%, American Airlines at 12.9%, Alaska Airlines at 11.1%, Frontier Airlines at 11.0% and Delta Air Lines at 9.7%, the authority said.
Cargo
Cargo volume was 71,344 tons in August, up 3.3% from 69,040 tons a year earlier.
Freight accounted for 60,795 tons, up 4.1%. Mail was 10,549 tons, down 1.0%.
Year to date, cargo totaled 574,783 tons, a 6.5% increase from 539,508. Freight was up 9.3% at 493,711 tons and mail was down 7.5% at 81,072 tons.
Satisfaction ranking
The release also cited the JD Power 2026 North America Airport Satisfaction Study, saying Ontario's 705 points out of a possible 1,000 was the top score among California airports regardless of size. The authority said the airport placed second in North America in the medium-size category.
The authority's July report, issued Aug. 24, had put that month's passenger total at 673,413, down 1.2% from July 2025.