Springfield-Branson National Airport sets record with more than 90,000 passengers in March

Ralph Green, Springfield News-Leader
·2 min read
Travelers collect their luggage from baggage claim at the Springfield-Branson National Airport on Tuesday, April 19, 2022. Masks were made optional on public transit, including on airplanes and at airports, after a ruling by a federal judge in Florida voided the mask mandate.
Travelers collect their luggage from baggage claim at the Springfield-Branson National Airport on Tuesday, April 19, 2022. Masks were made optional on public transit, including on airplanes and at airports, after a ruling by a federal judge in Florida voided the mask mandate.

With pandemic life receding in Springfield, air travel appears to be bouncing back.

The Springfield-Branson National Airport announced Wednesday that it set a record this year for total passengers in the month of March.

The airport saw 97,457 total passengers pass through in March.

The Springfield-Branson National Airport said in a news release that when the pandemic first started in 2020, travel was down 94 percent. Over the last two years, however, numbers have slowly climbed back toward (and now exceeded) pre-pandemic levels.

“The non-business traveler is definitely part of pentup demand,” airport spokesman Kent Boyd said in a news release. “Folks haven’t traveled for the past two years. They want to get out of town and go on vacation. They want to visit family.”

The Springfield-Branson National Airport says that airlines are struggling nationwide with pilot and crew shortages, but demand for air travel is going up. As a result, flights have become more expensive.

In mid-April, Allegiant Air reduced its Springfield summer schedule 15 to 20 percent citing "limited crew resources." Allegiant also made similar reductions nationwide.

More: CU Transit, Springfield Branson National Airport drop mask mandates

Here's a breakdown of the number of passengers who have traveled through the Springfield-Branson National Airport in the month of March over the last 10 years:

  • March 2013: 65,185

  • March 2014: 71,561

  • March 2015: 72,192

  • March 2016: 69,688

  • March 2017: 78,445

  • March 2018: 85,109

  • March 2019: 90,895

  • March 2020: 51,065

  • March 2021: 65,308

  • March 2022: 97,457

“We’re hopeful that the airlines are on the road to a full recovery,” Boyd said in the release. “The March passenger numbers could be a sign of even better things to come.”

Ralph Green is a business reporter with the Springfield News-Leader. Contact him at RAGreen@gannett.com, by phone: (417-536-4061) or on Twitter at RalphGreenNL

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield-Branson National Airport sets passenger record for March