Press Release: 2025-01-22

Worcester Regional Airport Continues to Grow with Another Record-Breaking Year

 

Over 229,000 passengers flew through Worcester last year

2024 was an exciting year at Worcester Regional Airport (ORH) marked by a record-breaking 229,374 passengers passing through its gates. This represents an impressive 11% increase from 2023 and the highest passenger count since Massport took ownership in 2010. The year also brought substantial enhancements to the terminal and airfield, alongside numerous partnerships with community groups, further solidifying ORH’s role as a vital regional hub.

With the growing number of passengers at ORH, Massport has made significant investments to enhance the airport’s facilities. One of the most notable upgrades was the expansion of the security checkpoint, including the addition of another lane to reduce wait times. Extra seating was also added in the gate area for greater passenger comfort, and the number of parking spaces was increased to accommodate for the rise in passengers. Despite these improvements, parking remains the most affordable in the region at just $7 per day.

“Worcester Airport is growing, with the highest number of people flying through here in decades,” said Andy Davis, Airport Director of Worcester Regional Airport. “Airlines are bringing bigger planes, parking and security have been enhanced, and all of us at the airport are committed to serving the growing number of passengers. We look forward to many more years of growth, and thank the people of Central Massachusetts for their continued support.”  

At Massport, safety and security are our top priorities. As part of this commitment, we replaced the Engineered Materials Arresting System, or EMAS, at the end of Runway 11/29 at ORH this year. The critical system is designed to safety stop an aircraft that overruns the paved runway area. EMAS has proven to save lives and aircraft worldwide, and is especially vital at ORH because of its unique location atop a hill with steep inclines on both sides of the runway.

ORH is not only the airport of Central Massachusetts, but also an important member of the community. This year, the airport partnered with the Yellow Tulip project to host an exhibit focusing on local teens speaking out about mental health, and partnered with local artist Jose Crillo to showcase his art in the terminal. Massport also is a proud sponsor of the CENTRO Latin American festival and the Pride Worcester Festival. As a member of the Worcester community, we also support the Worcester Park Stewards program which gives summer jobs to local teens.

We also celebrated another year as the official airport of the WooSox, continuing our partnership with Polar Park and the Worcester Red Sox. Massport is proud to be involved in the local community, and works with organizations like Discover Central Mass. to help showcase everything that the area has to offer.  

Massport thanks everyone who has supported ORH over the years, and we look forward to another successful year in 2025. If you haven’t flown through the airport yet, we invite you to see just how easy flying can be.