America’s loneliest airports outside of Alaska
Based on calendar year 2023 data for enplanements (boardings only), the following commercial airports outside of Alaska had the fewest annual passengers in the United States. A maximum of 5,000 passenger enplanements was required for inclusion. Generally, enplanements are roughly 50 percent of an airports total passenger load. Alaska was excluded due to the sheer number of very small and remote communities.
Source: freepik.com
Probably this biggest surprises on this list are Pueblo, Colorado given it has more than 100,000 residents and is a fairly long and busy trip to Denver, as well as Mammoth Lakes, California given that it is a popular ski resort area. Though Branson is a popular entertainment destination, nearby Springfield, Missouri captures most of the air traffic and renamed it airport Springfield-Branson National to help attract travelers headed for Branson. Many the other airports are either in very rural locations or situated a bit too close to a larger airport (e.g. Altoona, Muskegon, and Hot Springs).
Montana and California lead the way with three airports each on this list, followed by Arkansas, Hawaii, Missouri, New York, and West Virginia with two each. It is a little surprising to see no airports from Texas on the list given its size and vast rural areas.
Peace!
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Branson, MO = 2,607 passenger enplanements2. Glasgow, MT = 2,982
3. Havre, MT = 2,964
4. Kalaupapa, HI = 3,085
5. Wolf Point, MT = 3,153
6. Altoona, PA = 3,231
7. Jackson, TN = 3,264
8. Pueblo, CO = 3,359
9. Kamuela, HI = 3,598
10. Hot Springs, AR = 3,727
11. Merced, CA = 3,798
12. Bradford, PA = 3,897
13. Mammoth Lakes, CA = 3,966
14. Burlington, IA = 4,076
15. Friday Harbor, WA = 4,080
16. Kirksville, MO = 4,281
17. Alliance, NE = 4,328
18. Carlsbad, CA = 4,329
19. Parkersburg, WV = 4,391
20. Muskegon, MI = 4,521
21. Harrison, AR = 4,565
22. Quincy, IL = 4,710
23. Beckley, WV = 4,882
24. Saranac Lake, NY = 4,944
25. Massena, NY = 4,958
Altoona Airport – Source: skyvector.com
SOURCE: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/2024-10/cy23-commercial-service-enplanements.pdf
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