File Photo / Tim Greenway
Airport Director Paul Bradbury of the Portland International Jetport
Updated: March 18, 2020
As air travel drops off, Maine's largest airports grapple with changes
File Photo Courtesy / Bangor International Airport
Bangor International Airport Director Tony Caruso said the airport has seen a drop in passenger loads over the past week.
As the coronavirus pandemic hits air travel worldwide, Maine's two largest airports are seeing a dramatic drop in passenger demand as they take measures to protect employees and travelers.
Paul Bradbury, director of Portland International Jetport, said the number of screened or departing passengers has decreased sharply each day since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic just last week.
That situation continues to worsen, with 56.2% fewer departing passengers this Monday compared to the same date, March 16, in 2019, he said.
"This is truly unprecedented," he said by phone from his office on Tuesday. "In terms of the impact to aviation, we are outstripping 9/11."
The shock follows an all-time record month for the Jetport in February, when it handled more than 133,000 passengers.
"Like the stock market, it's suddenly after that announcement [about the pandemic] that things became very volatile, very fast," Bradbury said.
Like many other employers, the Jetport also has employees who can working from home, along with staggering shifts for those who have to be on premises, to help contain the spread of the virus.
"This is on a 24/7 schedule," Bradbury said, noting that while the Jetport employs the equivalent of just under 60 people full-time, the airport itself is home to more than 1,000 badged individuals. The Jetport is a public airport owned and operated by the city of Portland.
"Even in the operations center, where we would normally have two people working, we have one in the center and one on call," he explained. "This is on a 24/7 schedule."
Under the current circumstances, Bradbury estimates the airport is operating with about a third of its staff on-site.
Drop in Bangor passenger loads
Tony Caruso, director of the Bangor International Airport, reported a similar situation at his facility. Bangor's airport is a joint military-civil public airport owned and operated by the city of Bangor.
"The airlines continue to operate on a normal schedule," he told Mainebiz on Tuesday. "However, we've noticed a drop in load factors over this past week."
In number terms, he said that passenger loads are currently at around 40% to 50%, down from 80% to 90%.
He said that while it's hard to predict if the trend will continue, people are still travelling, including students and others trying to get home.
"We continue to monitor that business segment very closely," he said, adding that Bangor International has enlisted its consultant to put together an economic evaluation of airlines.
"Certainly we can put in contingency plans if things really do get severe."
He also said that there's been a decline in cargo traffic as well.
From a staffing standpoint, Caruso said the airport is working with employees "to understand their challenges that this issue has raised for them," including day care.
Bangor International has a workforce of 93 full-timers and a little more than 80 part-time personnel, he said.
"We want to be flexible and want to work with them because their safety is paramount," he said. At the same time, "we are an airport, we need to operate 24/7." He said the airport is also making sure that staff continue to use personal protective equipment that it provides, encouraging the use of hand sanitizer and gloves whenever possible.
To ensure passenger safety, both the Jetport and Bangor International have also increased cleaning measures and are continuing to monitor recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and posting regular updates online.
Both airports are encouraging passengers to check with their airlines for the status of flights and health-related updates.
"We know it might be a struggle to reach the airlines, but it's important to have some patience," Caruso said.
As both airports keep tabs on a fast-changing situation, they're also braced for putting a halt to planned capital improvement and expansion projects.
"We're still proceeding with our expansion plans, but it is still yet to be determined," said Caruso. "We will coordinate closely with the FAA and our local leaders here ... We'll see how this develops, and how deep and how wide this issue really gets."
At the Jetport, Bradbury said his organization is also looking at where its resources need to be, but said that workers are taking advantage of emptier parking lots at the moment to do some maintenance work, including striping and repairing ceiling cracks. "These are things you can't do in lots full of cars."
'Open and ready to provide the service'
Bradbury underscored that the Jetport is very much open for business and is doing its utmost to ensure passenger safety.
"The Portland Jetport is here to serve, transportation is vital," he said. "There are people who are trying to get back to loved ones. We will be here for them, we will be open and we will be ready to provide the service."
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