ND Airline Passenger Levels Rise from April’s Historical Lows

North Dakota’s eight commercial service airports during the month of May posted a total of 13,474 passengers boardings. Due to impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, these numbers amount to a statewide decline of 86% of the normal passenger volume that the airports were previously expected to see during this month.

Airline passenger levels in North Dakota and throughout the rest of the country are beginning to slowly rise from the historically low passenger numbers that were previously seen in April. In that month, North Dakota airports experienced approximately 5,000 passengers or a statewide decline of 95% from the normally expected passenger volume.

“It’s an encouraging sign to see that our airline passenger numbers are beginning to rise from the historically low numbers that our state and nation recently experienced in April.” stated Kyle Wanner, Executive Director of the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission.  “We hope that this trend continues as economic activity increases and restrictions throughout the country are lifted.  The safety of all passengers and workers continues to remain a top priority and the flying public can be assured that extra sanitary precautions are being taken so that a safe environment is being promoted within the airport and on board the aircraft.”

Kim Stevens

Kim Stevens is the publisher of State Aviation Journal, which he founded in 2009. A longtime commercial-rated pilot, he was introduced to state aviation in 1992 as Director of the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics, later serving as Deputy Division Director for the Arizona Department of Transportation's Aeronautics Division. From 2013 to 2018, he was Director of Communications and Operations for the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) in Washington, D.C. Relocating to North Carolina, Kim worked for the Raleigh-Durham International Airport for two years and now concentrates solely on the Journal. Prior to his aviation career, Kim spent a decade in the newspaper and magazine business.