Airport traffic confirms tourism recovery

FORT MYERS — Passenger traffic, takeoffs and landings at Southwest Florida International Airport rose in April, confirming the rebound in the region's tourism.

In April, 815,978 passengers passed through the Fort Myers airport, a 3.25% increase compared with April 2012. For the year-to-date through April, passenger traffic is up 6.5% compared with the same period last year.

In 2012, the Fort Myers airport handled more than 7.3 million passengers, making it one of the top 50 airports in the country.

Meanwhile, aircraft takeoffs and landings at Southwest Florida International rose 6.8% in April compared with the same month one year ago. The airlines carrying the most passengers into and out of Fort Myers were Delta, AirTran, JetBlue, Southwest and United.