Rapid City Airport Sees Best Month this Year

The Rapid City Regional Airport had record breaking passenger loads in both January and February, putting the airport on track for a fourth record-breaking year in a row. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, passengers loads dropped by 93% to a new low in April, when compared to 2019.

August produced the best passenger numbers the airport has seen since December of 2019. Traffic at the Rapid City Regional Airport has been slowly growing since April numbers hit an all-time low of 1,486 (April, 2019 enplanements were 21,414). In May, the numbers increased to 5,807, June 11,119, July 19,922 and now August has increased even further to 24,692. Although the enplanements are well below August of 2019, (41,804 passengers), airport officials are pleased with the upward trend. Rapid City Regional Airport has managed to stay slightly ahead of the national average.

Rapid City Regional Airport’s year-to-date numbers are down 50% under the record 2019 year. However, when considering the five-year average for year-to-date, they are down 37.5%.

“The Sturgis Rally definitely helped the airport’s overall enplanement numbers," said Airport Executive Director Patrick Dame. "Overall, our August passenger security screening numbers were above the national average. We are hopeful for our customers to return as we get closer to a vaccine for COVID-19 and they regain their confidence in traveling.”

Rapid City Regional Airport is the only full-service commercial airport for the Black Hills, serving several major cities throughout the United States. RAP currently offers year round service to Dallas, Denver, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Phoenix-Mesa, and Salt Lake City; with seasonal service to Charlotte and Chicago, Houston, San Francisco and New York/Newark.

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