Apr. 11—The number of people flying out of the Bellingham International Airport is nearly back to pre-pandemic levels.
Last month 27,801 people used the airport to travel, according to data collected by the Port of Bellingham. While still below the March 2019 total of 37,500, it was more than triple the March 2021 total of 9,039.
The numbers are similar for people flying into Bellingham, according to the data.
Airport traffic is expected to continue increasing after the Canadian government dropped its testing requirement at the border on April 1.
At times prior to the pandemic Canadian traffic represented around 50% of the airport's total activity. Last month the Port's Aviation Director Sunil Harman said that bookings for flights were very strong after Canada announced its changes to its border policies.
Traffic at four of Whatcom County's border crossings was strong for the second straight weekend, according to the Cascade Gateway data website. The total number of northbound and southbound vehicles averaged approximately 15,000 daily on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, April 8-10. That's similar to the first weekend Canada eased its border restrictions.
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