Some airlines may be having a tough time due to the slow economic recovery, but the Federal Aviation Administration says business will likely pick up in a few years. The latest air travel projections from the FAA predicts that, while business will likely remain depressed because of the economy over the next three years, the number of people who fly will likely double by the year 2032.
Indianapolis Air Service Specialist, Chris Matney says the Indy airport got a preview of what traffic might be like 20 years from now right after the Super bowl.
"We were at capacity. There were a lot of people here after the Super Bowl. But the airport itself and the infrastructure that we had in place was able to handle that activity," Matney says.
But there are no guarantees Indianapolis or any airport, in fact, will actually see as much growth as the FAA projects. Matney says Indianapolis is much more conservative with its projections.
"Indianapolis and our region, by nature, tends to pace itself close to the national economy, but maybe just a little bit behind. Sometimes that works out pretty well because when the economy for the US drops dramatically, we don‘t drop as much," Matney says.
Smaller airports around the state also are predicting slower growth than the FAA projects.