Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport saw its string of annual traveler growth snapped last year as some airlines serving Broward County encountered financial troubles, cut back service and flew passengers to other destinations.
Overall, passenger traffic was down 8.5% for 2025 to more than 32.2 million against the prior year’s 35.2 million, according to statistics posted by the airport for the full calendar year. Six of the airport’s “Top Ten” carriers flew fewer passengers to and from the airport last year than in 2024.
Among the contributing factors for the decline:
• Spirit Airlines, the financially-troubled Dania Beach-based discounter which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last August for the second time in a year, still ended up as the leader in market share at 28%. But it is now a smaller airline serving fewer destinations while operating a smaller fleet. The number of passengers carried fell by 18.3% from nearly 11.1 million in 2024 to slightly more than 9 million last year.
• Southwest Airlines, which started a major restructuring of operations last year at the behest of activist shareholders, saw its passenger traffic fall from just under 4 million to slightly more than 3 million, a drop of 24.1%.
• Silver Airways, the Hollywood-based regional airline that served several Florida cities and the Bahamas, went out of business in June after filing for bankruptcy protection in late 2024.
• Azul, the largest airline in Brazil that flies more than 800,000 travelers annually between Fort Lauderdale and the South American nation, saw its traffic decline by more than 60,000 passengers as it underwent a Chapter 11 restructuring last year.
• Air Canada, the main carrier for ferrying Canadian snowbirds to and from Florida, saw its traffic fall by 7.2% amid tense relations between the U.S. and Canadian governments.
• EL AL Israel, citing a need for more space for its trips to and from South Florida to Tel Aviv, started phasing out its service at the airport in favor of Miami International Airport.
Fort Lauderdale airport leaders were not available Monday to discuss the 2025 results or what’s in store for 2026. Miami International has yet to publish its figures. Palm Beach International Airport appeared to be on an upward path, reporting more than 8.6 million passengers for the 12-month period ended in November 2025, good for a 4.1% increase. It has not yet posted the full calendar year results for 2025.
In the past, airport executives have noted that for every carrier that vacates a space, another steps in to fill the void.
That appears to be the case unfolding at Fort Lauderdale.
A rebound near?
Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air, whose traffic rose by more than 20% at the airport, and rival discounter Frontier Airlines of Denver are adding flights at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood. Other discounters such as Breeze have added service. And Bahamasair has picked up slack left by Silver.
But the biggest lift appears to be on the way from New York-based JetBlue Airways, a steady No. 2 behind Spirit in market share at the airport. Its takeover bid for Spirit was blocked by a federal judge, but since then, the airline has embarked on an internal program to improve its service and finances. Since starting service at the Broward airport more than 30 years ago, JetBlue has routinely called Fort Lauderdale one of its “focus” cities.
Its market share climbed to 20.6% in 2025 despite a 2.9% decline in traffic from more than 6.8 million passengers year-over-year.
According to JetBlue executives who addressed industry analysts during an earnings call last week, Fort Lauderdale is a key component of the airline’s growth plans. JetBlue and the airport are collaborating on the construction of a new Terminal 5 on the airport’s southeast side.
“Fort Lauderdale represents a strong premium leisure market as both an origin and destination,” said Martin St. George, the airline’s president, according to a transcript of the phone conference with the analysts. “We are now offering up to 26 daily Mint flights touching Fort Lauderdale this winter, offering more domestic first-class seats than any other carrier in Florida. In addition, Fort Lauderdale is set strategically between a strong foothold in the Northeast and a robust Latin and Caribbean network, making it a well-placed connection gateway for customers, with significant upside potential for JetBlue.
“With our far better customer experience and competitive low fares, and now more destinations, we are pleased to bring even more value and choice to customers in Fort Lauderdale and across South Florida,” St. George said.
