BOSTON - New England's airports can expect passenger traffic to grow 77 percent by 2020, with most of the region's smaller airports seeing bigger percentage gains than dominant Logan International, according to a study released Wednesday.

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The report, sponsored by the New England Airports Coalition, says New England is equipped to handle the growth without building a new airport, but only if the region's 11 passenger service airports improve performance and prepare for more passengers.

"By continuing to enhance the operation of each airport in the system, the region can avoid the tremendous cost and community disruption that developing a new major airport would require," the report concluded.

Although smaller airports are expected to continue to relieve pressure on Logan, the Boston airport is projected to handle a majority of the region's air travelers for at least the next 14 years, the report says.

However, six airports are expected to post more rapid passenger growth than Logan through 2020. And despite a slowdown in airport investment after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, several New England airports are now improving or adding terminals and runways to compete with Logan and other rivals.

"All the airports in the region are growing, so everybody has to take on some extra burden," said Jeff Bourk, assistant manager at Maine's Portland International Jetport, which added service from the low-cost carrier JetBlue last spring.

The study follows a report in 1989 that suggested New England needed to build another major Massachusetts airport to relieve congestion at Logan — an idea that quickly ran into opposition.

The report released Wednesday projects New England's total air passenger traffic to increase 77 percent, from nearly 43 million in 2004 to about 76 million by 2020.

Among the region's six airports with more than 1 million passengers per year, the report projects the highest growth rate — 88 percent — at New Hampshire's Manchester-Boston Regional Airport. The facility recently changed its name from Manchester Airport to promote itself as a no-hassle travel alternative to Logan.

Manchester-Boston's director, Kevin Dillon, said he agrees that New England can accommodate growth without another new major airport, provided existing airports continue expanding.

"The capacity we have will easily accommodate the region's aviation needs," said Dillon, whose own airport has nearly completed a 10-year, $500 million improvement project.

Other major New England airports with growth rates expected to exceed Logan's 73 percent include Maine's Bangor International (87 percent); Portland International (86 percent); and Vermont's Burlington International (84 percent).

Logan's passenger traffic is expected to grow from 24.5 million passengers in 2004 to 42.4 million by 2020, which is the largest increase in actual numbers.

Logan is prepared for the growth.

"All the improvements to our facility have anticipated steady growth and demand and we are prepared to accommodate this level of demand," said Betty Desrosiers, Logan's director of strategic projects.

The report recommends Logan "continue to pursue new air traffic control technology to improve efficiency, especially during adverse weather conditions."

New England's second-busiest airport, Connecticut's Bradley International, is forecast to see relatively slow 60 percent growth, from 6.5 million passengers in 2004 to 10.4 million in 2020. In Warwick, R.I., T.F. Green Airport is forecast to see 72 percent growth, from 5.3 million to 9.1 million.

Two small airports are expected to post the fastest growth rates of the region's 11 passenger airports, in part because they now have only tiny shares of the region's market. Connecticut's Tweed-New Haven Regional is forecast to see passenger traffic increase from 43,000 in 2004 to 962,000 by 2020, with Massachusetts' L.G. Hanscom Field expected to grow from 26,000 to 451,000.

The report says New Englanders take to the air more frequently than most Americans, making an average 2.5 passenger trips per person per year, compared with 1.4 percent nationally.

The team that authored the study will visit each of the region's airports over the next two months to discuss the findings. The study was authored by a consulting team led by The Louis Berger Group.

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On the Net:

New England Regional Airport System Plan:

http://www.nerasp.com/NERASP_Final_Report_Web_Version.pdf