BELGRADE - Montana’s busiest airport, Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport has served over 2,200,000 passengers since June of 2021.
“We’re taking advantage of it, now we’re trying to catch up with all of our infrastructure to handle that influx of traffic that we see,” airport director Brian Sprenger said.
Some of that infrastructure includes the Northside Project for General Aviation Flight Schools, as well as an expansion of terminal ramps.
“Probably the one that most people are most concerned about is the large expansion for the parking lot at our terminal,” Sprenger said.
Sprenger notes that May of 2022 has been 25% busier than last May, but this year should be nearly a carbon copy of last year, in terms of passengers being served.
The airport saw a record-breaking year in terms of travelers, seeing over 2 million people come through the terminal last year—an 82% increase over the last five years.
Three new travelers who came through the airport for a board meeting and noted how surprised they were at the crowded flights and terminal.
“Yeah, I was surprised,” Matt Vanslembrouck said, “Our flight was full and there were other flights that were landing at around the same time that were full, so it was pretty busy!”
Quinton Baily was traveling in from Chicago, a city no stranger to busy airports.
“I feel like there’s a lot of people really, coming off of the Memorial Day holiday and traveling around, it was more busy than I expected,” Baily said.
Though busy, Dana Head noted that it was "straightforward" to navigate through the terminal.
“Having never been here before, it was very direct; even though it was busy, we were able to follow the crowds and find our way out, find our baggage,” Head said.
