Twin Cities Fields Find Double-Digit Rise in Activity

Airports ringing the Minneapolis Twin Cities have been seeing a continued surge in activity, with Flying Cloud Airport seeing a 12% bump while nearby relievers gain more than 8% in flights.

The Metropolitan Airport Commission overseeing the regional operations said that the region is seeing increased activity across the board - individual aircraft operations jumped up to 370,500 over last year's 242,100. The ring of reliever airports surrounding their primary airport, Minnesota Saint Paul, have been carrying a greater load as that hub alone saw nearly 324,000 operations in 2023.

“Our airports have experienced continued growth and energy as the general aviation sector continues to build momentum across Minnesota,” said Joe Harris, director of reliever airports for the Commission. Luckily, there's enough bandwidth in the local airport ecosystem to keep up with the increased tempo, he said. “The growth has been steady and durable, even overcoming the effects of significant snowfall that impacted our region through the first several months of 2023.”

“The foundation for the 2023 growth was set in recent years by the MAC’s investments in strategic planning, services and infrastructure improvements at each of the general aviation airports around the Twin Cities area,” said Commission CEO Brian Ryks. “This long-term approach ensured that MAC was well positioned to serve the growth in recreation and corporate flying activity, and to accommodate millions of dollars in new private investments that expand services and facilities for airport tenants and users.”

FMI: www.metroairports.org