Jul. 4—GUILFORD COUNTY — As the coronavirus pandemic took hold more than three years ago, causing aviation passenger numbers to nosedive, Piedmont Triad International Airport Executive Director Kevin Baker brainstormed with airport leaders and staff about how long it would take to return to normal.
The PTIA group examined a host of factors, amid many unknowns, and came up with the end of 2024 before passenger boardings might return to the levels seen before the COVID-19 crisis.
Today, Baker optimistically says that PTIA passenger traffic could be close to or back to pre-pandemic levels by the end of this year instead. At its meeting last week, the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority reported that passenger boardings had recovered to 80% of 2019 levels as of the end of May.
Baker told The High Point Enterprise that projections for summer travel, coupled with more passengers arriving for the fall High Point Market, give PTIA officials reason to hope the second half of this year will further reduce the COVID-19 gap.
"The end of this year looks really strong," Baker said.
Passenger boardings were 76,813 in May, up 9% compared to May of last year, and are up 10% year to date.
Baker said that it's a matter of when, not if, PTIA will return to pre-pandemic levels, barring any unpredictable issue affecting the aviation industry.
"We are looking to have a busy summer," he said.
The biggest problem now for PTIA and the aviation industry in general is the lagging number of pilots. When the pandemic hit, airlines offered early retirement packages to pilots to curb costs amid a rapid decline in revenues as people stopped traveling. Now that the economy has recovered, airlines are scrambling to secure pilots for additional routes and service.
"It remains a problem for us," Baker said. "The situation with pilots is improving but it's improving very slowly."
Financially, the airport already has fully recovered from the downturn of the coronavirus pandemic, Baker said.
The total new budget for PTIA for the 2023-24 fiscal year, which begins July 1, is $40.9 million, up 17% from the $34.8 million budget of the previous year. Operating revenue totals $34.2 million, up 19% from the $28.7 million for the 2022-23 fiscal year.
[email protected] — 336-888-3528 — @HPEpaul
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