Meanwhile, the state Aviation Commission recently approved $16 million in infrastructure grants for public airports across North Dakota.

The number of air passengers in Bismarck, Williston, Dickinson, Minot, Fargo, Grand Forks, Devils Lake and Jamestown totaled 103,068 in May, surpassing the previous record of 100,389 in 2014, the commission said. The number of air passengers increased by 13% compared to May 2023.

“Demand for air travel remains strong across the state and we are pleased to exceed passenger numbers not seen since the oil boom,” commission director Kyle Wanner said in a statement. “Increasing passenger traffic will continue to help strengthen North Dakota's airports and their efforts to secure additional air service.”

Boardings increased year-over-year at all airports except Grand Forks, which saw a 5.9% decrease compared to May of last year, and Jamestown, which saw a 77.5% decrease due to a planned extended closure for a major road reconstruction project.

Boardings in Bismarck increased 25.7%, thanks in part to a new Allegiant flight to the Tampa Bay area, while those in Dickinson rose 5.5% and those in Williston rose 34.7%. Other increases included Fargo (8.7%), Minot (11.1%) and Devils Lake (44.1%).

Fargo and Devils Lake airports set new records in May with 44,547 and 947 passengers, respectively. The previous May record for both airports was set last year.

The number of placements statewide is 491,520 year-to-date, an increase of 7.1% over the same time in 2023. In Bismarck, placements are up 13.6%, in Dickinson, 9.8%, and in Williston, 30.2%.

Average aircraft utilization across the state was 80% in May. There were 1,516 departures and nine cancellations, for a cancellation rate of 0.6%.

Travelers can fly nonstop from Bismarck to Minneapolis, Denver, Dallas, Phoenix, Las Vegas, Orlando and Tampa Bay.

The full May boarding report can be found at bit.ly/4c4CTxd.

The Aviation Commission recently approved $7.7 million in grants for commercial service airports and $8.3 million for smaller general aviation airports.

The commission said $10 million of the money came from the Operation Prairie Dog bill passed by the House in 2019 to distribute state oil tax revenues to counties, cities, towns and airports in non-oil producing areas for infrastructure purposes. The other $6 million came from the Aviation Commission's special fund, whose main source of revenue is state tax revenues on jet fuel and aircraft sales. The state money also serves as a counterpart to federal funds.

Bismarck will receive about $671,000 from the state for more than a dozen projects, from resurfacing the road to replacing carpet in the terminal. Williston will receive $171,700 and Dickinson will receive $1.6 million for various projects. Fargo will receive the most money, at $3 million.

“Our airports are critical to the economic health of the state, enabling the safe and efficient movement of people and products around the world,” Wanner said. “We are pleased to provide these grants and contribute to infrastructure solutions that will help our communities grow and diversify their local economies.”

A complete list of projects and grants can be found on the Commission's website at aero.nd.gov.