Between January and May, more than 21 million passengers were transported, and the highest number of operations was recorded, driven by the growth of international flights, thanks to the management of Javier Milei
The aerocommercial activity in Argentina has reached an unprecedented milestone under the current management, recording between January and May 2026 the highest levels of passengers and operations for that period in its entire history. According to official data provided by the National Administration of Civil Aviation (ANAC), during the first five months of the year, a total of 21,413,752 passengers were mobilized through the nation's airports, representing a 3% increase compared to the previous record of 2025.
This growth phenomenon is supported by a massive operational deployment, with 167,136 operations recorded in the same period, surpassing the 165,966 of the previous year. This vigorous dynamism is fundamentally explained by the growth of international traffic, which has become the true engine of the historical record of passengers that the country is experiencing.
Flight record
Specifically, the segment of trips abroad shows compelling figures: between January and May, international passengers totaled 7,763,000, a 16% increase compared to the same period last year. This surge in connectivity with the world is particularly notable in the productive interior of the country, where the growth of international travelers from provinces outside the AMBA skyrocketed by 42%. In this context, the performances of Córdoba, with an increase of 61%, and Rosario, with a 51% increase, stand out.
Decentralization and real federalism are reflected in that, just in May 2026, about 186,334 passengers flew abroad from provincial airports without the need to pass through Buenos Aires, a figure that is 22% higher than that of 2025 and an astonishing 97% above the records of 2023. International confidence in the government's direction translates into new investments and routes, such as the arrival of the Spanish airline Plus Ultra, which started operations between Madrid and the Argentine capital, or the Dominican Arajet, which inaugurated the Punta Cana–Mendoza service and plans to add Rosario soon.
In contrast to this global success, cabotage traffic presented a different dynamic, recording a 3% decline in the total for the first five months, with 6,821,000 passengers compared to 7,037,000 the previous year. The downward trend in the domestic sector deepened in May, a month that recorded 1,131,000 cabotage passengers, representing a 12% decrease compared to the same month in 2025, marking the lowest monthly record in three years.
Ezeiza International Airport
Locally, the declines were widespread: Aeroparque transported 890,000 passengers in May (14% less), while Ezeiza recorded a 24% drop in that month for domestic flights. Other tourist destinations such as Mendoza, Iguazú, and Bariloche also suffered retractions of between 10% and 24%. However, the robustness of the international market allowed the total number of passengers for the January-May period to close at 14,593,000 travelers, remaining 6% above the levels of 2025.
According to the Secretariat of Transport, the domestic segment contributed a total of 13,641,352 passengers in the accumulated total (counting origin and destination), demonstrating that, despite adjustments in the internal market, Argentina is moving towards a record aerocommercial activity driven by freedom and global integration.
