Tucson Airport in Arizona has issued a statement noting that 2019 marked its 5th busiest year. What’s more, says Danette Bewley, President and CEO of Tucson Airport Authority, “A mere two months ago we were cautiously optimistic we would see continued growth, and possibly serve more than 4 million passengers this year.”
However, she added, “Along with all of you, our landscape changed suddenly.” As a result of the current coronavirus crisis the airport’s passenger numbers have plummeted more than 90% and there are days, Bewley states, the airport has just hundreds instead of thousands of passengers compared with the same day a year ago. This, she adds, “is nearly the same story at airports across the United States and around the globe.”
Despite the drop in demand for air travel, airports continue to be considered essential critical infrastructure, so as with other air transport hubs Tucson remains open and operating. Employees of the Tucson Airport Authority, airlines, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), food and retail concessions, car rental companies, ground transportation providers and other tenants continue to report for work each day to fulfill their respective logistics roles in ensuring safe, secure operations and to assist in the transport of passengers and cargo. Tucson Airport is also home to the headquarters of the 162nd Wing of the Arizona Air National Guard, which the airport is also supporting so it can continue with its training, air defense and homeland security mission.
“The crisis has affected us all in different ways,” Bewley concludes. “It is truly inspiring to see how the Tucson region has come together.”
