Airline passenger traffic makes significant gains from 2021

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Airline passenger traffic at North Dakota’s eight commercial airports improved significantly in January compared to the same month last year, but still remain below pre-pandemic levels. According to the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission, 73,117 passengers used the airports in January, 73% more than the same month in 2021, but below nearly 100,000 passengers in January 2020, about two months before COVID-19 struck. Airports in Bismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, Minot, Devils Lake, Jamestown, Dickinson and Williston all experienced an increase in passenger traffic last month, ranging from 54% in Bismarck to 154% in Dickinson, the Bismarck Tribune reported. Hector International in Fargo, the state’s largest airport, saw an increase of 87%.