BANGOR – Bangor International Airport reported substantial growth for the year 2002, including a 10.5 percent increase in passengers from 2001.

Airport Director Rebecca Hupp credited the growth to three things.

“First and most importantly is the fact that there are more flights to and from Bangor,” Hupp said. Daily airline seat capacity rose 12.4 percent, meaning there were about 68,000 more seats available to consumers in 2002 than in the previous year.

BIA’s location and size was a second reason. Hupp explained that people no longer want to drive to a larger airport because of the hassle of security.

And lastly, the economy has been relatively stable in Bangor compared with other areas, resulting in a strong demand for air service, Hupp said.

“In general, the unemployment rate has been low and we’ve not seen, at least to this point, some of the more severe impacts that they’ve seen in other areas of the country,” Hupp said.

In the future, she expects the airport to gain even more regional jet services, as well as provide additional airline and destination options for its consumers.

BIA flew about 39,000 more passengers last year than in 2001. This was in contrast to industry trends, which saw airline boardings fall 4.7 percent for 2002.