Alabama’s Birmingham Airport Expects Steady Growth Following Credit Upgrade

Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport (BHM) in Alabama, which surpassed the 3 million passenger mark for the second straight year in 2024, foresees steady growth going forward, buttressed by a recent credit rating upgrade.

The largest airport in Alabama handled 3.24 million passengers in 2024, up 6% over 3.05 million passengers in 2023. BHM has added three new routes and one new airline since Oct. 3.

The leading carrier at the airport is Southwest Airlines, which opened service to Phoenix in October and Nashville, Tennessee, in November. Spirit Airlines entered the market in October when it launched daily flights to its Fort Lauderdale, Florida, base.

BHM is connected to 21 U.S. airports nonstop covering 18 cities across the U.S. The airport is served by five airlines. American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines each serve multiple hubs from Birmingham. Southwest operates 10 of the airport’s 21 nonstop routes.

Southwest has a 33% market share, followed by Delta at 28%, American at 27%, United at 10% and Spirit at 2%.

Competitive routes from BHM include Southwest flying to Chicago Midway, while both American and United operate to Chicago O’Hare. Southwest offers service from BHM to Houston Hobby, while United flies to Houston Bush Intercontinental. Both Southwest and United fly from BHM to Denver.

The Birmingham Airport Authority (BAA), which runs BHM, saw Fitch Ratings last month upgrade its rating on revenue bonds issued in 2020 from A- to A. “The upgrade reflects BAA's strengthened financial profile, supported by the quicker-than-anticipated full recovery [from the pandemic],” Fitch said in a report, adding; “BAA's liquidity has grown over the past few years in part due to revised terms in the airline use and lease agreement, which eliminated airline revenue sharing … [BHM has] manageable future infrastructure needs and strong financial results.”

Regarding the rating upgrade, BAA said it “could expect lower interest rates if issuing debt for airport improvements and modernization projects,” adding: “The ability to borrow money at a lower interest rate is always a plus when contemplating major projects in the future. [BHM] continues to experience steady passenger growth."