Columbia airport travel up 500% in May, though still not back to pre-pandemic levels

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Columbia Regional Airport saw a 500% increase in travelers last month compared to May of last year, but traveler numbers are still not back up to pre-pandemic levels.

In May, the Columbia Regional Airport saw 13,672 passengers travel through the airport, which was a 506.3% increase in travelers compared to May 2020.

According to the Columbia Regional Airport's passenger load data, April 2021 saw a total of 9,416 passengers compared to just 1,045 passengers in April 2020. This is an increase of 801.1% travelers according to the airport data.

With the recent increase in travelers, American Airlines decided to reinstate a flight to Chicago and also add a third flight to Dallas/Fort Worth departing from COU.

So far, the average number of monthly travelers at the airport sits at just over 8,000 people a month for both 2020 and 2021.

Pre-pandemic flight levels for the airport in 2019 were more than double that, as an average of 22,133 passengers traveled through COU each month. April 2019 saw 13,281 passengers and May 2019 saw 23,149 passengers.

Recent discussion from Columbia City Council and airport advisory board has brought up the possibility of renaming the airport to the Columbia National Airport to reflect changes to the organization.

The airport is currently building a new terminal which is expected to be finished next summer according to the city of Columbia.