Pittsburgh International Airport and Its Airmall Ramp Up as State COVID Restrictions Ease

May 9—In the past, Pittsburgh International Airport's Airmall has been so popular that some people would make the trip to visit the shops and restaurants even if they weren't flying.

But all that changed in March 2020 when COVID-19 emptied out the Findlay airport, with traffic plunging as much as 96%.

The fallout forced Fraport Pittsburgh, the Airmall operator, to close 61 of 72 stores and restaurants. Of the Airmall's 500 employees, no more than 40 stayed on the job.

Advertisement

"It was a very sad and challenging time a year ago," said Amy Miktus, vice president of Fraport Pittsburgh.

But these days, passenger traffic is rebounding and so is the Airmall — and Ms. Miktus sees it only getting better after the state lifts all COVID-19 restrictions, except mask wearing, on May 31.

"It's great news," she said of the decision. "It certainly comes at a perfect time. People are certainly ready to travel. Confidence is growing."

With the end of state restrictions, Ms. Miktus noted that Airmall restaurants will be able to open at 100% capacity. Although many have been at 75% capacity in recent weeks, some have been hampered by space constraints, she said.

Advertisement

In going to 100%, "it does appear that most will be able to add some seating," she added.

Right now, 40 "units" — 22 restaurants and 18 news or retail shops — are open, and 250 to 300 workers have returned to their jobs.

With the state mandates ending, Ms. Miktus anticipates at least several more concessions opening this summer in addition to two this month.

"Certainly the mandate being lifted adds another level of confidence that travel levels will improve," she said.

The Airmall has been seeing increased traffic since June. But it wasn't until March that things really changed for the better.

"March was kind of the turnaround month. It's been a pretty steady climb since mid-March," Ms. Miktus said, noting that spring break and rising vaccinations both played a role.

Ms. Miktus expects to have 75% to 80% of all concessions open by the end of the year.

Busiest day in a year

The march toward normalcy hit a new milestone Thursday, with 9,193 travelers passing through the airport's checkpoints, marking the busiest day since the start of the pandemic.

That is part of a pattern that started two months ago and appears to be picking up a tailwind.

For the week of April 25-May 1, 51,466 travelers passed through the airport's security checkpoints, the most since the week of March 8, 2020, although still down 45% from 2019.

The airport is expecting the ascent to continue into the summer, as more people get vaccinated and are eager to emerge from a year of hibernation.

Airlines plan to add up to 20,000 additional weekly seats to and from Pittsburgh through mid-June to popular leisure destinations in Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina.

In addition, Southwest Airlines, the airport's top carrier in terms of passengers, will launch a Saturday flight to Cancun starting June 12.

And while most of those flying are headed to leisure destinations, the airport is seeing signs that business travel could be returning to life, with Delta, for example, restarting flights to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York last week.

With the uptick in traffic, the airport reopened all of its parking lots last month. The tram that takes travelers between the landside and airside buildings once again is operating at normal capacity, as are all escalators and moving walkways.

The airport used the downturn in traffic during the pandemic to put in place enhanced cleaning measures to combat COVID, including autonomous UV floor scrubbers, touchless options like wave-to-call elevator buttons and smart phone enabled check-in kiosks, and reconfigured socially distanced seating in the food court and gate areas.

"We continue to develop and deploy additional touchless tech options, enhanced cleaning procedures, and other processes that make the travel experience safer and healthier for passengers and airport staff, spokesman Bob Kerlik said.

Despite the brightening picture, both he and Lisa Farbstein, spokeswoman for the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, stressed that those visiting the airport still must wear masks.

Gov. Tom Wolf did not lift the mask-wearing mandate in his latest order. And the TSA recently extended its mask-wearing requirement at airports and on airplanes to Sept. 13.

"Even if the state and county lift their mask mandates, that's all well and good. But once someone steps foot in an airport, they still have to wear a mask at the airport, at the gate and on the flight," Ms. Farbstein said.

Mark Belko: [email protected] or 412-263-1262.

First Published May 9, 2021, 6:00am

___

(c)2021 the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Visit the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette at www.post-gazette.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.