SRQ, which just added eight new flights to its roster from Allegiant Air, says it had a record July, with traffic up 42%

Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport — fresh off news this week that Allegiant Air was adding eight new cities to its roster of flights at the airport — said that passengers set an all-time record for the month of July with 147,068 traveling through the airport.

Traffic for July 2019 was up 42% when compared with the same month in 2018.

Year-to-date passenger numbers are up 40%, with 1,135,173 passengers using the airport so far in 2019.

“With eight new routes added just this week on Allegiant Air, SRQ now offers nonstop service to thirty-seven destinations," said Rick Piccolo, the airport's president and CEO, in a statement on Friday. "We are excited to see the nonstop choices at SRQ continue to expand. The eight airlines servicing SRQ offer a wide range of products for both business and leisure travelers alike."

In the last year and a half, Sarasota-Bradenton International has added two new airlines, Allegiant and Frontier Airlines, and 26 new destinations.

Earlier this week, the airport announced the new nonstop service to McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, Tennessee, launching Nov. 21 and year-round. The others flights — to St. Louis, Des Moines and Louisville; Fort Wayne and South Bend, Indiana; Rockford, Illinois and Flint, Michigan — will be seasonal.



Service will begin on Nov. 15 to MidAmerica St. Louis Airport, and on Nov. 23 to Des Moines International Airport and Chicago Rockford International Airport.



On Nov. 24, Allegiant will start flying to Bishop International Airport in Flint, Michigan, and Fort Wayne International Airport in Indiana. And on Nov. 25, flights will begin to Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport and South Bend International Airport.



The eight additional flights bring Allegiant’s total out of the airport to 20. Allegiant has by far the most routes of any airline operating at Sarasota-Bradenton.

Allegiant also is adding five seasonal routes to Punta Gorda Airport.

The airline started service at SRQ in in April 2018 with three destinations and announced an additional nine in November of last year.

The new flights are expected to bring nearly 54,000 new passengers a year through the airport. Introductory one-way fares will be as low as $59, the airline said.