North Dakota Posts 42,000 Airline Passengers to Start the New Year

Kim Stevens North Dakota

North Dakota’s eight commercial service airports posted a total of 42,238 airline passenger boardings during the month of January 2021. This is a 57% decline of the passengers that the state experienced during the same month last year which was pre COVID-19 pandemic.

“The negative impacts that COVID-19 has had on airline passenger demand is continuing into 2021.” stated Kyle Wanner, Executive Director of the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission. “It is however, encouraging to see COVID-19 cases in North Dakota and throughout the country trending lower which can have a direct impact on an individual’s decision to travel.  We also remain optimistic that further passenger growth will occur as Spring approaches and penned up travel demand may help to jumpstart the recovery.”  

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.