Worcester Regional Airport 2023 Passenger Numbers ‘Stronger’ After Pandemic

Only three years ago, Worcester Regional Airport’s runways and terminals were empty amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, the airport located “in the heart of Central Massachusetts,” has welcomed more than 193,000 passengers during fiscal 2023, numbers which they haven’t seen since pre-COVID, according to officials.

In a recent Facebook post, Worcester Regional Airport made the announcement that “air travel has fully returned to Worcester with over 193K passengers flying in fiscal year 2023!”

“We thank YOU,” says the post. “From the frequent flyers to the first-time customers — for choosing to #FlyWorcester!”

In 2020, Worcester Regional Airport, Massachusetts’ second-largest airport, was closed for more than 10 months during the pandemic, according to a press release from the Transportation Security Administration.

That summer, TSA officers in Worcester screened about 14 passengers a day, the release said, which was “down quite a bit from the 307 per day average in 2019.”

But the airport has bounced back, airport officials say.

In 2022, Worcester Regional Airport’s busiest screening day was 426 passengers per day in February, according to TSA New England spokesperson Daniel Velez.

So far this year, March has been the airport’s busiest month with the TSA screening 493 passengers per day. However, the year isn’t over, Velez said in an email, and the airport “might see heavy volume in Oct. and Dec. this year.”

The airport’s three major airlines — JetBlue, American Airlines and Delta Airlines — have all returned after suspending their flights in 2020.

MassPort Assistant Director of Media Relations Samantha Decker said the three airlines “offer travelers direct access to New York and Florida [and] provide opportunities to connect to numerous additional destinations throughout the U.S. and across the globe.”

Additionally, “numbers have come back stronger because the airlines are operating larger aircraft which,” Decker said, “has paid off, particularly in the Florida markets.”

For example, Decker said JetBlue often filled its 100-seat planes to Fort Lauderdale and Orlando International Airport. Now the airline is filling its 162-seat airplanes.

The airport has also been making an effort to work alongside airlines, specifically JetBlue, to work on the leisure air travel market business which Decker said “is rebounding faster than business” travel.

Currently, Worcester Regional Airport operates four daily flights. JetBlue offers service to both Fort Lauderdale and Orlando, Florida, which are considered “extremely popular” with flights being over 90% full. Delta offers service to LaGuardia Airport in New York and American Airlines offers service to JFK in New York.

What’s next for Worcester Regional Airport?

While reaching milestones like celebrating their 1 millionth passenger in 2022, plans for the future have also been in the works.

For instance, in January 2024, JetBlue will add Fort Myers to its list of destinations out of Worcester’s airport, according to Decker.

According to State House News Service, the airport is also working on an $18 million project to rehabilitate Runway 29, as part of a three-year $1.3 billion Massport capital plan.

Decker said the airport is in phase two of the rehab project, which costs $12 million and will allow the airport to relocate and expand the security checkpoint “to accommodate more activity and provide redundancies to keep our lines short and convenient.”

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