Pocatello Regional Airport Celebrates One Year of Third Flight, Passenger #s up 45%

The return of the third-daily flight to Pocatello Regional Airport officially turned a year-old March 2 and with its help, the airport is showing another batch of banner passenger numbers for the transportation hub.  

For the 12-months stretching from March 1, 2016 to Feb. 28, 70,255 passengers traveled to or from Pocatello according to statistics compiled by airport staff. The passenger count is up 45 percent from the 48,432 travelers during the same time frame from March 1, 2015 to Feb. 29, 2016.

“Previously, staff looked at the data at the six-month mark and we saw a 45 percent increase,” said David Allen, Pocatello Regional Airport manager. “We’re happy to see that we maintained that increase in passengers throughout the entire first year.”

Despite a relentless winter, 2017 is starting on a high note for the airport. A total of 10,708 passengers were counted during January and February. Comparatively, 7,717 were counted for the same period in 2016.

“We continue to beat the drum that travelers always, always need to check the fares and see if flying to or from Pocatello is right for them,” said Allen. “For example, a recent check from Pocatello to Seattle showed that Pocatello was only $8 more than the lowest fare we could find flying from Salt Lake City to Seattle.”