McCarran Airport set a volume record for the third straight year in 2019, eclipsing the 50 million-passenger mark for the first time in its history.

Roughly 51.5 million passengers passed through McCarran last year, a 3.8% increase from 2018, when 49.6 million passengers were served, according to the Clark County Department of Aviation. In addition to eclipsing the record for the third straight year, it marked the ninth consecutive year McCarran had a year-over-year increase.

Domestic passenger volume grew by 3.9%. Southwest remained the market leader with 17.3 million passengers. Spirit Airlines (5.2 million passengers, a 23.2% increase from 2018) and Frontier (3.1 million passengers, a 34.7% increase) posted significant gains.

International traffic remained steady with more than 3.8 million international passengers arriving and departing McCarran. New nonstop flights to Amsterdam (KLM), Tel Aviv (El Al) and Frankfurt (Eurowings were among the markets introduced in 2019.

McCarran celebrated the 50 million-passenger milestone in December.

There were almost 4.25 million arriving and departing passengers in December, up 9% from the same month in 2018.

Among the airport's other 2019 highlights: It partnered with the Transportation Security Administration to open the only Innovation Checkpoint in the nation in 2019. One of the implemented technologies was an advanced body scanner, which enables passengers to have a more natural stance while being scanned and which is also more accessible for those using wheelchairs.