Fewer Passengers Fly From Yakima Airport In 2018

In 2013 the city of Yakima launched a special marketing campaign for the Yakima Airport called Fly YKM. Airport Manager Rob Peterson says the campaign has been a big success with a 31 percent increase in passengers flying out of the airport between 2013 and 2017. But Peterson says 2018 was a challenging year for the facility with less people deciding to fly into and out of the Yakima Airport. In 2017 144,000 passengers used the airport.

But Peterson tells KIT News "2018 our numbers dropped by about two thousand passengers to 142,000 passengers. The reason for that was a lot of cancelled and delayed flights."
Peterson says a large construction project at SEA TAC airport late last year resulted in the flight cancellations and delays at the Yakima Airport. But he says airlines continue to be challenged by a lack of pilots that the industry is now trying to address through more intense training programs in area colleges and universities. Peterson expects a strong 2019 at the Yakima Airport.