HUNTSVILLE, Ala — Airports across the country are prepping for a surge in travelers is summer grows closer and more people get the COVID-19 vaccine.
We spent the day at Huntsville International Airport to see what they’re seeing.
Huntsville international Airport says the foot traffic looks a lot different than it did before the pandemic. But, things are starting to look up.
We met with Barbie Peek, Director of Business with Huntsville International Airport. She says, “For the month of January, our passenger traffic was at 39 percent of what we were in 2020. February, we were at 42 percent… And in the month of March, we were at 55 percent as compared to 2020.”
The weather is warming up and vaccines are rolling out. We asked if the airport thinks this trend of more passengers is going to continue.
Barbie Peek tells our reporter, “We definitely think that the vaccine is definitely going to be a factor for people to get back out in the planes and in the skies and going places. We are seeing an increase in traffic this month, naturally, with springs break. People are starting to get out. As businesses start to get back to business and their employees start traveling, we should see the numbers start to grow.”
If you haven’t been to the airport in a while, things can look a lot different.
Peek says, “We want to remind people to wear their masks… We have face guards at all the different ticket counters, you’ll see stickers on the floor to help remind you of social distancing… If you don’t bring a mask, we do have masks available here.”
TSA has some tips to remember if you haven’t flown in a while.
Peek reminds passengers, “Leave your prohibited items at home. Be prepared when you get to the TSA checkpoint with your ID… The REAL ID will be required for passengers traveling on the plane. So, tell everyone to get signed up for that REAL ID and that will go into effect on October 1.”