• 

  Harry Reid International Airport

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  LAS/KLAS

  Country:

  United States

  Passenger Count :

  39,754,366 (2021)

  Runways :

  1L/19R - 2,740m (8,989ft) | 1R/19L - 2,978m (9,770ft) | 8L/26R - 4,424m (14,514ft) | 8R/26L - 3,208m (10,524ft)

  Terminals:

  Terminal 1 | Terminal 3

America’s COVID-19 aviation recovery continues to gain traction, with some areas pulling ahead of where they were two or three years ago. Las Vegas’ Harry Reid International Airport has seen its seat numbers soar past pre-pandemic levels.

Ready, set, Vegas

When compared to June 2019, the number of passengers using Harry Reid in June 2022 is up an impressive 7%. That’s double the increase that Charlotte Douglas International Airport has seen. According to OAG data, more than 2.6 million people passed through Las Vegas’ main airport, up 2.5% compared to last month.

However, not all US airports have seen the same recovery. Some of the country’s most famous airports are still tracking at below 2019 levels in terms of seat numbers. New York’s JFK Airport, for example, saw 3,091,763 available seats in June 2022, down 6.1% when compared with 2019 figures.

Los Angeles’ LAX airport, potentially one of the most famous airports in the world, saw 23.5% fewer seats in June 2022 than in 2019. On top of this, seat numbers are increasing much slower than at airports like Las Vegas. Seat numbers at LAX increased by just 0.8% when compared with last month.

In fact, out of the US’s seven largest airports, Harry Reid Airport was the only one that saw its number of available seats increase in June 2022 when compared with June 2018. Despite the mixed picture, the general trend is a gradual improvement in passenger numbers. The increase in demand has taken airlines by surprise, with many struggling to overcome labor shortage issues. The dropping of pre-departure COVID-19 testing requirements will likely fuel a further recovery.

America adopts a more relaxed testing regime

While the US has relaxed its policy in regards to testing, it looks set to keep its vaccine requirement. Despite the recent increase in COVID-19 cases worldwide, many countries are dropping all COVID-19 travel requirements. In the Americas, countries like Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Jamaica have lifted all COVID-19 entry regulations.

Across Europe, several countries have also lifted COVID-19 entry rules. Among these countries are the UK, Iceland, Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Turkey, Poland, and many more. There are renewed calls in some countries (Canada, for instance) to end vaccine requirements.

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Speaking about the shift in the US government’s position, Roger Dow, president of the US Travel Association, said:

“The Biden administration is to be commended for this action, which will welcome back visitors from around the world and accelerate the recovery of the US travel industry. International inbound travel is vitally important to businesses and workers across the country who have struggled to regain losses from this valuable sector.”

The travel industry and the last two US administrations clashed throughout the pandemic over how best to support and reopen the sector. US airlines have received more than $54 billion in government support since the start of the pandemic. Many airlines around the world would not have been able to survive the effects of the pandemic without significant government support.

What do you think of America’s recovery? Let us know in the comments below.