Passenger count at Wilmington Airport tops half a million amid expansion efforts

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Wilmington Airport continues to see a rise in commercial air traffic, with more than half a million passengers traveling through the airport since Avelo Airlines began service in February 2023.

According to the Delaware River and Bay Authority, which operates the airport, this marks the highest commercial volume seen at the airport in recent history. During the first half of 2025 alone, about 156,000 passengers used the airport, up 20% compared to the same period last year.

“At Wilmington Airport, the big milestone is that Avelo Airlines has carried over 660,000 passengers. And that was just at the end of June since their inception with us February 2023,” said Jennifer Oberle-Howard, deputy director of communications and marketing at DRBA.

The jump in activity comes just two years after Delaware was the only state in the country without commercial air service. Since then, Avela has added 14 routes from ILG to destinations mostly in the South and Southeast U.S. The most traveled routes so far this year include Orlando and Fort Myers, Florida, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

“It’s a great milestone for Avelo flying over 650,000 Customers at the Philadelphia / Delaware Valley’s Wilmington Airport (ILG). Since the start of service at ILG in February 2023, our goal was to provide travelers with affordable, convenient and reliable air service and we’ve done just that,” said Avelo Airlines founder and CEO Andrew Levy in an emailed statement.

Oberle-Howard pointed to a few key reasons behind the airport’s recent growth, which include its low parking fees, shorter security lines and a new luxury motorcoach connection service.

“We have our American Airlines landline, which is a luxury motorcoach connection service that allows travelers to book as ILG, which is Wilmington Airport as their origin, and they can go through TSA seamlessly and check their bags at Wilmington Airport and then they travel in comfort up to Philadelphia and get right at their gate, and again, it’s hassle free,” she said.

ILG is also undergoing a terminal expansion project, expected to wrap up by fall 2025, that aims to accommodate increased demand.

“We will have an additional gate so we can offer more destinations and possibly more planes,” she noted. “We are also expanding restrooms and passenger terminal areas. A TSA-dedicated PreCheck line will be added and just last week a new baggage carousel came online.”

While the airport has no direct role in selecting new routes, Oberle-Howard said ILG is preparing for future growth based on what airline partners, particularly Avelo, decide to prioritize.

In addition to infrastructure changes, ILG is joining the Sunflower network, which trains airport staff to better assist passengers with hidden disabilities.