Late Tuesday afternoon, Flight 194 marked American Airlines’ first direct flight from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport to London Heathrow Airport in more than two years.
British Airways resumed its nonstop service to London last August and in May; Condor Airlines will resume direct flights to Frankfurt, Germany.
Phoenix Aviation Director Chad Makovsky told the Maricopa Association of Government’s economic development committee Sky Harbor was “the fastest recovering airport of all airports over the period of 2019-2021 as you look at TSA transportation statistics. U.S. average recovery was about 68%, but what we are seeing is about 85%.”
While traffic is close to pre-pandemic levels, today's passengers look different.
“We were about a 70-30 split in 2019 in terms of leisure vs. business travelers going through our airport and in 2021, what we’re seeing now is we’re at about 81% leisure and 19% business,” Makovsky said.
This summer, the eighth and final concourse at Terminal 4 is expected to open. Southwest Airlines will use all eight gates.
