This is the last in a 6-part series about RDU’s pursuit of new international air service. Read the series.

In our series, we’ve covered Europe, Asia, India and the Middle East pretty thoroughly. While these are some of the top regions for international air service growth, other regions of the world shouldn’t be ignored. Here’s a snapshot of some of the other regions of the world. 

Snapshot of Canada

RDU is the 29^th top US city for passenger traffic to Canada. The ties between the Tarheel State and Canada are growing. Our current, daily nonstop service to Toronto carries most of the demand for Canadian traffic; however, a few cities are in our sights as potential areas of growth. These include:

• Montreal
• Ottawa
• Vancouver

Snapshot of the Caribbean

One of the top domestic destinations that we are actively working on adding is San Juan, Puerto Rico. San Juan is a hub with connections to many of the smaller Caribbean islands, and is the most promising opportunity for Caribbean service in the future. We also enjoy  seasonal Bahamas and Cancun service by Delta, Vacation Express and BahamasAir. 

Snapshot of Latin America

Last year, we shared about the growth in traffic to Mexico City. Mexico is a nation in particular that we are keeping a close eye on in part due to this growth and the many business and industry connections between our region and the nation. Looking further south, we’re keeping an eye on Brazil. In recent years, the connections between the Research Triangle Region and Brazil, specifically Sao Paolo and Rio de Janiero have been growing. We’ll be looking at improving one-stop connections like the new American service from New York and Miami that was recently announced.

Snapshot of Africa

Africa is one of the regions of the world where we are seeing the greatest increase in travel. We are currently the 15^th largest U.S. airport in terms of traffic to Africa. However, we won’t be seeing a nonstop flight anytime soon. As connections in the local agriculture, pharmaceutical and medical industries strengthen between our region and Africa, we’re confident that the growth in transatlantic service that we are seeking will provide quicker connections and make all parts of the continent easily accessible from RDU.

Snapshot of Oceana

Our recent nonstop service additions to San Francisco and Los Angeles have opened the door for one-stop connections to Australia, making two-stop trips to many South Pacific destinations possible. Traffic to this region of the world is growing, and we see that continuing at a steady pace. And, as we work to strengthen our West Coast destinations, reaching the Southern Hemisphere will only become easier. 

Help Us Grow!

Growing our international service is a community effort. One thing I’ve realized through this series is there’s a lot about our community that we know, but a lot we don’t know. Your comments throughout the past few weeks have given us invaluable information that we are taking to the airlines next week to work to gain service.

Please let me know in the comments below about international travel and international ties at your company. We know the connections for many of the larger employers in our region, but we also know there are smaller companies that frequently travel the world.

With your help, we look forward to expanding the route map at RDU!