JAMESTOWN, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – North Dakota’s eight commercial service airports posted a total of 89,865 airline passenger boardings during the recent month of July.

This is a decline of 3,057 passengers or a 3.3% decrease in passenger numbers from July of 2021.

North Dakota’s airline passenger counts are currently following a national trend where passenger growth over the last year has leveled to approximately 15% below 2019’s pre-pandemic passenger counts. This is mainly a result of the limited seat capacity and flight departures that are currently available to the traveling public as those levels continue to remain below pre-pandemic levels. As shown in the table below, an estimated 111,039 total airline seats were available for purchase within the state of North Dakota during the recent month of July. This is a 16% decrease or an estimated 20,858 less seats than what was available in July of 2019.

Passenger demand remains elevated as many of the flights departing or returning to North Dakota are full or near full with the average aircraft load factor at an estimated 80%. As always, it is recommended to plan ahead and purchase tickets multiple weeks ahead of any planned trips to ensure that each traveler has an available seat.

Jamestown Regional Airport saw 1,073 passengers in July 2022 and a total of 6,989 this year so far. The airport is up 20% in boarding numbers compared to 2021.