Kelowna

Kelowna International Airport has reached the one million passenger mark quicker than it ever has before.

Photo: Kelly Hayes - File Photo

Airport Communications Coordinator, Jenelle Hynes, says the one millionth passenger went through the airport during the first week of September, weeks ahead of past years.

"It was only seven years ago that YLW first reached one million passengers in a single year, in December, 2005," says Hynes.

"We are very pleased to see the continued growth in our passenger numbers. We have seen seven of the last eight months in 2012 be record breaking months and, this summer ended with almost 15,000 more passengers than last summer."

Figures for the first eight months of 2012 released by YLW show 972,663 passengers either flew in or out of YLW between January and August. An increase of nearly 4 per cent of a year ago.

August of this year was also the busiest month in the history of the airport; with 136,101 passengers, an increase of nearly 6 per cent over a year ago.

Hynes says the steady increase in passenger traffic should continue to grow when the winter schedule kicks in with non-stop flights to sunny locations such as Phoenix, Las Vegas, Los Cabos, Puerto Vallerta and Cancun.

Saturday seasonal service on WestJet to Los Angeles begins November 3, while daily, year-round flights from Kelowna to LA on United Airlines start December 19.