BISMARCK – Passenger boardings at North Dakota’s eight commercial airports combined to set an October record despite a government shutdown, according to the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission.

In October, North Dakota airports recorded 116,294 passenger boardings, setting a new all-time high for the month of October. This surpasses the previous record of 112,273 boardings set in 2024 for a 4% year-over-year increase, representing more than 4,000 additional travelers, the commission reported.

Seven of the state’s eight commercial service airports also reported growth compared to October 2024, contributing to North Dakota’s eighteenth consecutive month of record-breaking passenger traffic.

Minot International Airport boarded 14,582 passengers, up from 14,477 in October 2024 for a 0.73% increase.

The state also remains on pace to finish 2025 with its highest-ever annual passenger total.

The federal government shutdown, which began on Oct. 1, had minimal impact on North Dakota’s airports during the month of October, according to the commission. Of the nearly 1,800 scheduled airline departures statewide, only one flight was canceled.

Direct impacts to North Dakota airports began to emerge on Nov. 7, when the FAA announced that 40 airports nationwide could experience temporary capacity reductions of up to 10% due to air traffic controller staffing constraints. This recently resulted in some delays and cancellations across North Dakota’s airports, with the full impact to be reported in next month’s passenger boarding release from the commission.

The 43-day shutdown ended on Nov. 12, allowing the Federal Aviation Administration to scale back reductions to about 6% as airspace operations at affected airports are gradually restored. Some residual delays and cancellations may still occur in the week ahead as the federal workforce fully resumes operations, the commission reported.

“Travelers can take comfort knowing that air travel operations are expected to return to full capacity before the Thanksgiving travel period begins. As operations return to normal, passengers are also encouraged to continue monitoring airline updates for any schedule changes or potential impacts to their flights,” a commission release stated.

“In the spirit of gratitude, I want to thank all of our federal employees, including TSA staff and air traffic controllers, who continued to provide essential services throughout this challenging time period,” said Kyle Wanner, executive director of the commission, in the release. “Air travel remains one of the safest and most reliable forms of transportation, and we look forward to operations returning to full capacity in the coming days.”

Highlights from October include:

– Fargo’s Hector International Airport set a new record with 50,846 boardings, surpassing the previous high of 48,627 set in October 2024. This also marks Fargo’s nineteenth consecutive month of all-time monthly highs.

– Devils Lake Regional Airport reached a new October record with 988 boardings, exceeding the prior October record of 785 in 2024.

– Average aircraft load factor statewide showed 82% seats filled.