Passenger traffic at Pittsburgh International Airport fell in the first six months of 2026, partly due to Spirit Airlines’ demise and higher fuel prices industrywide.
There were 4.67 million passengers either taking off or landing at PIT through June 30, according to data from the Allegheny County Airport Authority. That’s down 1.1% from 4.7 million through June 30, 2025, when Spirit Airlines was still flying. Domestic passenger traffic dipped 3% to 877,898 in June, down 3% from June 2025. But international passenger traffic rose 17.1% to 34,080 in June thanks to the first full month of Aer Lingus’ Dublin-Pittsburgh service as well as Icelandair and British Airways continuing.
Spirit had the sharpest percentage drop among the airlines serving Pittsburgh, falling from 164,331 passengers enplaned from January to June 2025 to 57,210 during the same time this year. The bankrupt airline stopped flying May 1, leaving passengers and two Airbus A320 aircraft temporarily stranded at PIT. But Spirit’s financial woes had led to sharp cuts in service even before the end; it was the fifth-biggest airline by market share at PIT in 2025.
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