Jackson Airport Sees A Banner Year

It was not the banner year that 2008/2009 was, but travel through the Jackson Hole Airport was slightly higher in 2012 than during 2011.  By year’s end 276,282 people flew into the valley while 275, 621 caught flights out.  Over the holidays particularly, says Airport Manager Ray Bishop the carrying capacity of the airport was pushed to its limits.  He says during Christmas season, the airport normally has to cancel a number of sorties due to bad weather sending them to Idaho Falls or Salt Lake City.  However, this year’s snows came at the right time so flights we not cancelled – so there was very little attrition. Consequently the Christmas season was really robust and that caused parking at the airport to be at a premium, but Bishop says the parking lot really is about right for the airport’s needs most of the year.  One of the big changes from the banner year he says has been the variety of destinations served by the flights in and out of Jackson Hole which will likely bring more growth in ridership.  This year, the airport is served by San Francisco, LA, Houston and now Newark, New Jersey.  He says he anticipates destinations like Newark will continue to grow in popularity and 2013 will conclude even a couple percentage points above 2012. Bishop says relations between the airport and the four major airlines and two commuter carriers serving it have been excellent.  He says together with the carriers, it is a team effort to assure the airlines have the facilities they need and the airport sees the level of customer service it desires.