Nearly 2.6 million travelers flew in and out of Ontario International Airport (ONT) in the first half of the year, an increase of 6.5 percent compared to the first six months of last year.

According to the Ontario International Airport Authority (OIAA), more than 2.4 million were domestic passengers while more than 148,000 were international customers, increases of 4.5 percent and 57 percent, respectively.

In June, the total number of ONT passengers was more than 477,000, an increase of 9.6 percent over June a year ago. The number of domestic travelers grew 9.4 percent to more than 451,000. International passengers increased 12.6 percent to more than 26,000.

“Ontario airport experienced significant growth in passenger volume during the first half of the year as airlines initiated new services to major airports in Atlanta, Houston and San Francisco and added flights to existing routes,” said Mark Thorpe, CEO of the OIAA.

Air travelers can now reach 21 major domestic/international destinations via nonstop commercial service from ONT.