Southwest Airlines slipped by Frontier Airlines to finish as DEN No. 2 carrier by passenger count in 2012, according to airport traffic numbers.
UA remained DEN dominant carrier in 2012, although its market share by passenger total slipped to 40.47 percent from 2011’s 42.96 percent, down 5.3 percent, the airport reported.
Southwest accounted for 23.62 percent of DEN passengers in 2012, up 9.3 percent from 2011.
Frontier now stands at No. 3, with 21.92 percent of DEN passengers in 2012, down 1 percent from the prior year.
The two airlines have been trading second and third place back and forth in recent years in DEN monthly traffic totals, but this time Southwest tops Frontier in a passenger report covering a full year.
Here is market share for other DEN airlines in 2012:
• DL — 4.58 percent.
• AA— 2.87 percent.
• US— 2.69 percent.
• All other airlines collectively — 3.85 percent.