Peoria airport hits all-time record passenger numbers in March
PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — The records keep falling when it comes to total passengers at the Gen. Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport.
The Metropolitan Airport Authority of Peoria announced that March had the highest number — 71,988 — of passengers flying in and out of the airport. The old record was in July 2019 when 68,447 flew in and out of the airport.
It also beat the old monthly all time high by more than 5%, said Gene Olson, Director of Airports for the authority.
'We knew that March was going to put up some impressive numbers, based on the activity in our parking lots, and we suspected we might set a record,' he said. 'But we didn't anticipate breaking the all-time monthly record, and we didn't foresee setting the record by that large of a margin.'
He added the airlines have been adding frequencies to the destinations we already served and adding new destinations.
'We're grateful to the folks in Central Illinois who have been using those additional flights,' he said. 'People have really been supporting our existing flights, and we're seeing great usage of both our low-cost Denver weekly flights and our new daily Denver flights on United.'
The airport has seen increasing numbers which have exceeded the pre-Covid monthly averages since last June. In 2024 alone, the airport set monthly records in August, September, November, and December. They set a record this past January but fell short by just over 500 passengers in February which was likely due to snow-related cancellations at the hub airports.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Skift
11 minutes ago
- Skift
Planners Fear Immigration Crackdowns Will Make Hotel Labor Shortages Worse: Exclusive Survey
The hospitality industry has struggled with a labor shortage since the Covid pandemic. Now, immigration enforcement and an anti-immigrant sentiment are adding a new layer of complexity. An exclusive Skift Meetings survey of U.S. planners shows that they expect to grapple with the effects of Trump-era immigration policies on their events, with growing concern about hotel staffing across the board. More than two-thirds of respondents (72%) said they expect hotel staffing to be affected in 2025–2026 because of immigration policies. Only 13% foresaw no impact. 'Hotel staffing never fully bounced back after the pandemic. We're still experiencing some gaps in service in certain markets and at certain properties,' said Kyle Jordan, director of meetings at the Institute for Operations Research and Management Sciences (INFORMS). Staffing issues are being felt at more than hotels. 'Challenges extend to other key partners like AV providers and vendors that support our meetings,' said Jordan. 'While it's hard to predict the full impact, I would expect that deportation activity could further strain staffing in some destinations.' Concerns stem not just from general staffing shortages but also the effect of revived immigration enforcement policies. 'The main issue is that for many workers in hotels, while they may be legal immigrants, the feeling toward immigrants in general has turned toxic,' said Mark Phillips, CEO of LamontCo. 'No one wants to live and work in such an environment or put families through it, so over time we will see less available even legal immigrant workforces. It already appears to be happening in several cities.' ICE Raids and Protests Exacerbate Immigration Issues In Los Angeles, several days of protests followed large-scale immigration raids by ICE. Protests have spread to other U.S. cities, including Atlanta, Chicago, Washington, D.C, and New York City. a'The hospitality industry relies heavily on immigrant labor especially in back-of-house roles like housekeeping, food and beverage service, and maintenance. Stricter immigration enforcement, increased deportations, and general anti-immigration rhetoric have created fear and uncertainty among these workers, not to mention ICE raids, and I-9 audits. This leads some to leave the industry or self-deport, reducing the labor pool, making it even harder for hotels to fill critical positions,' said Robert Kraus, founder of Small Conferences. Kraus added that there are concerns about the future of the H-2B visa program and similar initiatives. 'There's also a worry that H-2B visas and other temporary worker programs will be curtailed plus general apprehension on potential workers to risk coming to the U.S. just to be told they can't enter or later be sent home only after a short amount of time. This could easily limit the number of foreign workers applying, which is critical for meeting seasonal demands of resorts and other hospitality businesses.' Labor shortages have already disrupted event logistics.'In several cases, my groups suffered through multi-hour lunch services because the hotel restaurant kitchen could not keep up with demand,' he said. Legal Compliance Doesn't Eliminate Anxiety Michael Dominguez, president and CEO of ALHI, argues that deportation is not necessarily a direct impact to hotel staffing. 'It has been required by law for any employee to complete an I-9 form, which verifies legal status and requires documentation,' said Dominguez. 'Any company or hotel not doing that is in violation of Section 274A of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1986. Everyone working in a hotel needs documentation, or they are breaking the law.' Still, legal status does not erase worker anxiety, said Melanie Nathan, human rights advocate and executive director of the African Human Rights Coalition. 'I know people who are perfectly legal and who have filled in those I-9's who are too scared to go to work. They are standing back to try and ride out what they feel like is a storm. Some fear they might get picked up in workplaces where there are likely to be raids.' Guest Services and Sales Take a Hit The staffing crunch is also affecting guest experience and hotel revenue. 'Daily housekeeping is no longer a given. There are hotels where it is now every other day or on request,' said Akshar Patel, VP of corporate strategy and development at eShow Event Management Solutions and a hospitality expert. Beyond guest services, the staffing crunch is slowing business development efforts. 'A staffing shortage on the sales side is delaying RFPs,' said Patel. Andrea Milrad Heilweil, VP of sales and marketing at The Hutton Group, agrees. 'I have found that since Covid I have to be much more proactive with follow-up. Between people furloughed, laid off, or leaving the industry altogether, RFP responses, requests for contracts, setting up site visits, and general communication have been delayed.'
Yahoo
16 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Airline cancels all flights, shuts down leaving travelers stranded
Silver Airways, a regional airline based in Florida, abruptly canceled all flights on Wednesday, June 11, leaving travelers stranded after announcing bankruptcy. "We regret to inform you that we are ceasing operations as of today, June 11, 2025," the Fort-Lauderdale-based company posted on it social media pages. "In an attempt to restructure in bankruptcy, Silver entered into a transaction to sell its assets to another airline holding company, who unfortunately has determined to not continue Silver's flight operations." The carrier operates in Florida, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. "Please do not go to the airport," the airline wrote. "All credit card purchases should be refundable through your credit card company or your travel agency." The move, the company reported on social media, came after a potential buyer decided not to fund the airline's operations during a sale out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. As the airline wrote on social media, all tickets purchased by credit card will be fully refundable to the form of purchase. According to Robert W. Mann, Jr., a former airline executive officer and current president of R. W. Mann and Co., an independent airline consultancy, tickets not purchased by credit card will still be eligible for refunds, but those would-be passengers will have to get in line with other airline creditors. Passengers with tickets who need to travel soon will likely need to purchase tickets on other airlines at higher prices, according to Mann. It's very rare for airlines in the U.S. to completely go out of business. Often, struggling airlines get purchased by other carriers or folded into another company's operations. According to Mann, a few small regional airlines that operated on behalf of larger carriers went out of business during the height of the COVID pandemic, but those larger airlines reshuffled service to bridge the gap. Other smaller airlines like Tailwind, which provided scheduled seaplane service between New York and Boston, have also gone out of business more recently. Tailwind shut down operations in 2024, according to Mann. (This story was updated to add new information.) Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at zwichter@ This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Silver Airways bankruptcy: Flights canceled after airline shuts down
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Amtrak Pacific Surfliner Adds 12th Roundtrip Between San Diego and Los Angeles
New afternoon and evening trains between Los Angeles and San Diego offer travelers more flexibility along the Southern California coast ORANGE, Calif., June 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency (Agency) today announced that the Amtrak® Pacific Surfliner® train service has added more daily roundtrips between Los Angeles and San Diego, offering travelers greater flexibility and convenience along the Southern California coastal rail corridor. The expanded Pacific Surfliner schedule introduces new afternoon and evening travel options, providing better connections for both business and leisure passengers along the busiest state-supported intercity passenger rail route in the nation. "This service expansion provides more transportation options between San Diego and Los Angeles - just in time for summer travel," said LOSSAN Agency Chair and City of Fullerton Mayor Fred Jung. "It is the next step in restoring Pacific Surfliner service and creating more transportation options to Southern California's most popular events and destinations." Effective June 16, 2025, the Pacific Surfliner schedule will feature an additional southbound and northbound train: Southbound Train 582: Departs Los Angeles Union Station at 4:10 p.m., arriving at San Diego Santa Fe Depot at 7:04 p.m. Northbound Train 593: Departs San Diego Santa Fe Depot at 8:10 p.m., arriving at Los Angeles Union Station at 10:57 p.m. "This service expansion reflects our ongoing commitment to increase passenger rail access across Southern California," said LOSSAN Agency Managing Director Jason Jewell. "The additional frequencies offer greater travel flexibility while supporting a convenient, reliable transportation option." These additional roundtrips fill key gaps in the schedule, giving customers more flexibility to travel at times that better fit their plans. With tracks now fully open throughout the San Diego to San Luis Obispo corridor, Pacific Surfliner now offers 12 daily roundtrips between San Diego and Los Angeles, five daily roundtrips between San Diego and Goleta and three daily full-corridor roundtrips between San Diego and San Luis Obispo. In addition, Amtrak Thruway Bus Service offers guaranteed connections to Pacific Surfliner trains, extending travel options north to Oakland through Santa Barbara, Solvang, San Luis Obispo and Paso Robles, and southeast to Indio through Fullerton, Riverside, Palm Springs and Palm Desert. The Pacific Surfliner route spans 351 miles through six counties, serving 29 stations from San Diego to San Luis Obispo. This schedule change marks a continued effort by the LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency and its partners to enhance regional rail service and improve customer experience. It represents another step toward fully restoring service to levels that existed on the corridor prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which included 13 daily Pacific Surfliner roundtrips along this segment of the corridor. All Pacific Surfliner trains feature comfortable, reclining seats with power outlets, complimentary Wi-Fi, bike and luggage racks, and a Market Café offering food and beverages, including California wines and local craft beer. Tickets are available now at via the Amtrak mobile app, or by calling 800-USA-RAIL. About the Amtrak® Pacific Surfliner®The Amtrak® Pacific Surfliner® travels along a 351-mile coastal route through San Diego, Orange, Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties. It is the busiest state-supported intercity passenger rail route in the United States, serving nearly 3 million riders annually. About the LOSSAN Rail Corridor AgencyThe Los Angeles – San Diego – San Luis Obispo (LOSSAN) Rail Corridor Agency is a joint powers authority overseeing the management of the Pacific Surfliner service. The agency works to improve rail service quality, safety, and reliability along one of the most heavily traveled rail corridors in the country. Visit to learn more. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Amtrak® Pacific Surfliner Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
