🔒2022 Forecast: Up, up and away — cautiously — at Portland International Jetport
Zachary Sundquist, assistant director at the Portland International Jetport, says airport volume will all depend on COVID infection rates. PHOTO / COURTESY OF PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL JETPORT
Passenger traffic through Maine’s largest airport was almost back at pre-pandemic levels last summer. But time will tell if the recovery is there to stay, and when more business flyers may take to the skies.
At Maine’s busiest airport, business has been climbing — and the altitude in 2022 could reach levels not seen since before the pandemic.
Like other air transportation centers, Portland International Jetport saw passenger traffic plummet during the early outbreak of COVID. In fact, the number of travelers boarding and deplaning in 2020 at PWM, 792,571, amounted to only 36% of the 2019 total.
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Zachary Sundquist, assistant director at the Portland International Jetport, says airport volume will all depend on COVID infection rates. PHOTO / COURTESY OF PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL JETPORT
But as travel restrictions eased last year, the numbers began to turn around. One example: In August 2021, the Jetport handled 244,825 passengers, just slightly under the total of 251,375 for August 2019.
Summer is the Jetport’s key season, peaking in August.
“We believe we will be close to 2019 volumes in 2022 so long as the summer season is healthy,” says Zachary Sundquist, assistant airport director.
Surges in COVID infection may continue to affect traffic at the Jetport, he adds. The impact will primarily be on business travel.
Until that rebounds, PWM will be more of a leisure destination, served largely by point-to-point flights.
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“COVID has really morphed many of the airline’s views on flowing through hubs to more point-to-point service,” Sundquist says. “Last summer we saw United Airlines offering nonstop service from 10 destinations. For this coming summer we’ve already seen Sun Country expand their frequency to Minneapolis, and Southwest has announced new nonstop service to Nashville.”
But he also cautions: “Until the public health concerns get more resolved we continue to see volatility in travel, and it’s difficult to see many trends from a rapidly changing landscape.”
