1M passengers surge through RDU – most since pandemic; another airline launches service

MORRISVILLE – More than a million passengers flew through Raleigh-Durham Airport in April 2022, and as of today, the airport’s 13th airline carrier is now an option for travelers seeking to travel to a popular destination for Triangle residents.

Avelo Airlines, which announced in March that it would initiate direct flights from Raleigh-Durham Airport (RDU) to Tweed-New Haven Airport (HVN) in Connecticut, has now flown the company’s first flight pattern between the two.

“We are excited to welcome Avelo as they add a new city to our growing list of nonstop destinations,” said Michael Landguth, president and CEO of the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority, in a statement. “Avelo will provide the Research Triangle region more options to visit the New York metro area, our most popular destination.”

The airline will fly the route five days a week to start, with an expansion to six days per week in the middle of June, according to a statement released by the airport.

Icelandair became the 12th airline to provide service to and from RDU earlier this month, with a nonstop international flight between the Triangle and Reykavík, Iceland’s capital city. WRAL meteorologist Kat Campbell traveled on that first transatlantic flight earlier this month, and delivered reports from the capital city.

RDU lands a new airline carrier, with new flights to Connecticut

More than 1 million, but business travel still lags

The Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority also reported that 1,003,348 passengers chose to travel by flight through RDU.

That’s up 65% from the prior April, and is the highest monthly passenger count since the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the airport noted.

Year-to-date, more than 3.3 million passengers have traveled through the airport, an increase of 92% compared to the same period of 2021, according to the airport.

“RDU has shifted from recovery to growth mode as we prepare for the busiest travel season of the year,” said Landguth.

But most of the travel through RDU is leisure travel, as business travel remains reduced since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Leisure travel still outweighs business travel,” a spokesperson for the airport told WRAL TechWire.