Cardiff Airport's new managing director, Debra Barber, has said she is determined to reverse the decline in passenger numbers by attracting more airlines.
She told the BBC: "We're working really hard with the airlines to get them back in here, to get sustainable routes that we know are going to last and stay the distance."
Ms Barber, a former RAF group captain who was appointed the airport's operations director in May 2012, said she wanted to offer passengers the "best possible experience" to ensure they chose Cardiff rather than Bristol.
Last year, Bristol attracted almost 4.5 million passengers, while just over one million people travelled from Cardiff.
Cardiff Airport saw passenger numbers rise by nine per cent in the first ten months after it was bought by the Welsh government in March 2013.
Dutch carrier KLM has announced it is increasing its capacity from Cardiff, using a larger plane on its route to the Netherlands.