Data sourced from Luxury Link. ORF experiences less daily passenger traffic than average.
Sarah Richards|Marlin Chronicle
Isaac Fick|Marlin Chronicle
In a recent report from Luxury Link, an online booking platform specializing in luxury travel, it was found that Norfolk International Airport (ORF) experiences a smaller increase in daily passenger traffic during the holiday season when compared to the national average.
The report pulled Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) FOIA Electronic Reading Room data from 2022 and 2023 and ranked airports according to their change in traffic during the holiday season, which includes Thanksgiving and the winter holiday period.
In the case of the report, the Thanksgiving time frame includes the Friday before Thanksgiving to the Monday after, and the winter holiday period includes the Friday before the full week leading up to Christmas to Jan. 2.
Of 423 airports studied, with lower numbers demonstrating increased traffic during the holiday season, ORF No. 205, experiences a +4.2% increase. Nationally, a +6.2% increase is present during the holiday season.
According to the Norfolk International Airport website, the airport “presently ranks in the top 14% of the country’s airports in terms of passengers served annually, with over 4 million passengers and over 75,000 flight operations in 2022.”
As stated in the website, “the mission of Norfolk Airport Authority is to connect our community with the world by safely, reliably and efficiently operating Norfolk International Airport.”
Norfolk International Airport is considered a small hub airport, and No. 35 among the 74. The average change for small hub airports is +4.5%, with larger airports experiencing a larger increase in holiday traffic, according to the report.
In the small hub category, Tweed New Haven Airport (HVN) placed the highest with a +52.1% change. Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR) decreases in traffic during the holidays, demonstrating a -34.3% change.
In a poll released for Virginia Wesleyan students to express their opinions on the airport, the response was mostly positive.
“I’ve only been in a few airports before but Norfolk International Airport was by far the easiest to navigate,” Kimberly Koscinski said. She traveled using the airport for Thanksgiving of 2023.
Koscinski said she did not notice a difference between holiday and non-holiday travel, and in comparison to other airports, it was “so much quieter and calmer.”
“It was small and manageable for me, even with me being a nervous and inexperienced flyer,” Koscinski said. “The staff was very kind and helpful every time I was there.”
“It’s small and easy to get around, TSA is super quick and the views watching the planes take off over the botanical gardens are great,” senior Annie O’Shea said.
While O’Shea has not used the airport for holiday travel, she said, “I’ve never had a bad experience at the Norfolk airport vs other airports, it’s easy to get around and not as confusing as bigger airports, like JFK or ATL or ORD.”
For reference, JFK and ATL were not studied, but ORD (Chicago O’Hare International Airport) was No. 209, experiencing a +3.9% change during the holiday season.
“[ORF] was ok, it was a fast process due to my mom being a veteran,” sophomore Marquez Glover said. He added that he believed it was expensive.
“It’s nice but it doesn’t have as many destinations compared to the other airports,” junior Ernest How said. He said the airport is “nice, small and easy to get around.”
As written in the report, “In response to rising air travel demand, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has announced $289 million in grants to 129 airports across 40 states.
“As air travel hits record highs—including the TSA screening nearly 3 million passengers in a single day in June—these investments will help airports better handle surges in traffic during the busy holiday season,” the report said.
The highest ranking airport of the report was Salem-Willamette Valley Airport/McNary Field (SLE), experiencing a +500% change. SLE, during the non-holiday season, has an average of seven daily passengers, and has an average of 42 during the holiday season.
Northern Colorado Regional Airport (FNL) ranked the lowest at No. 423, with a -93.3% change. During the non-holiday season, FNL experiences a daily passenger average of 15 and an average of one during the holiday season.
According to the report, which also ranked states, No. 18 Virginia experiences a +5.1% change, Delaware, No. 1, experiences a +83.1% increase while Maine, No. 50, decreases 26.0%.
The full report can be found at https://www.luxurylink.com/blog/airports-with-biggest-traffic-surge-during-holiday-season/.
By Isaac Fick
