AIFA Surpasses 17 million Passengers, Outlines 2026 Growth Update

The Felipe Ángeles International Airport (AIFA) has transported over 17 million passengers since it began operations in March 2022, according to Isidoro Pastor, Director, AIFA. The airport closed 2025 with more than 7 million passengers, a year-over-year increase of over 12% compared with 2024, he adds.

The airport’s Master Development Program projects 9 million passengers in 2026, driven in part by traffic related to the FIFA World Cup, which will be hosted in Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara, says Pastor. AIFA is one of four airports expected to handle dedicated flights for teams, business travelers, and private aviation.

The airport’s international network includes three foreign airlines: Copa Airlines, Arajet, and Conviasa. International routes served from AIFA include Santo Domingo, Punta Cana, Bogota, and Caracas. The airport also handles a non-regular charter flight to Sofia, Bulgaria, operated by GullivAir.

Pastor says that AIFA lost 11 international routes in 2025, affecting an estimated 84,000 passengers. Two routes were canceled by Aeroméxico and nine by Viva Aerobus. During the year, the US Department of Transportation revoked approval for 13 current or planned routes by Mexican airlines to the United States. Two active routes from AIFA were suspended, while 11 planned routes from AIFA and the Mexico City International Airport (AICM) were canceled immediately. 

President Claudia Sheinbaum later said US airlines will regain some landing and takeoff slots at AICM that had been withdrawn under the slot reduction decree, noting these slots were ceded by Mexican carriers. The US DOT has stated that the Mexican government committed to returning all confiscated slots to US airlines. “The effect was manageable if you consider the 7 million passengers the airport transported this year,” Pastor says.

He adds that the federal government is working to recover the canceled routes in 2026. “The challenges for next year are set out in the work being carried out by President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo to recover the international routes that were canceled during this period,” Pastor says. “We hope they will be recovered in 2026, and that will strengthen the passenger numbers outlined in the planning document.”

The airport is also seeking to expand its international footprint. Pastor says two additional international airlines have expressed interest in operating at AIFA, though any decision will depend on their investment programs.

Cargo operations remain a key component of the airport’s activity. Pastor says 49 cargo airlines operate through AIFA, moving more than 1 million metric tons of goods since the airport opened.

“There is no dissatisfaction,” says Pastor. “[Airlines] have told [President Shienbaum] they are satisfied and operating at this airport because of the infrastructure and because there are no limitations on schedules or days of operation.”