LONDON – Based on data provided by RadarBox.com, Chicago O’Hare Airport continues to operate under pre-pandemic capacity in terms of movement statistics.
Data from the last few weeks indicate that their numbers are significantly down from 2019’s numbers and are anywhere from 6-10% lower than last year.
Without further ado, let’s get into the numbers…
The Numbers…
For October 29-November 5, the airport handled 1,824 movements based on the seven-day rolling average, which is down by 11.71% compared to the same period last year.
The airport is still requiring a staggering 706 movements to achieve pre-pandemic numbers, which can be seen as a cause for concern for the area.
Below is the last four weeks’ worth of data:
| Date | 2019 Numbers | 2021 Numbers | 2022 Numbers | Percentage Difference (2022 vs. 2021) |
| October 1-8 | 2640 movements | 2176 movements | 1969 movements | -9.51% |
| October 8-15 | 2651 movements | 2197 movements | 1979 movements | -9.92% |
| October 15-22 | 2631 movements | 2221 movements | 1991 movements | -10.36% |
| October 21-29 | 2429 movements | 2134 movements | 1960 movements | -8.15% |
What we can ascertain from the data is that O’Hare is close to busting the 2,000 movements limit for 2022’s numbers but still has a lot to do to achieve that moving forward.
Services Slowly Resuming…
Despite the lower numbers, services are slowly resuming from out of the airport. Let’s take Air New Zealand as a recent case study from last month.
The carrier also announced that the restarted Chicago flights have been inaugurated, meaning the airline has returned to all 29 of its international pre-COVID destinations.
Below is the scheduling of the Auckland-Chicago route:
| Flight No. | Aircraft | Departs | Arrives | Frequency |
| NZ8 | 787-9 Dreamliner | Auckland 8:15 pm | Chicago 5:00 pm | Wed, Fri, Sun, |
| NZ7 | 787-9 Dreamliner | Chicago 7:00 pm | Auckland 6:30 am | Wed, Fri, Sun |
This also means that the carrier serves seven destinations across North America, being:
- Chicago
- Honolulu
- Houston
- Los Angeles
- San Francisco
- Vancouver
- New York City
Geraghty expanded her views on the return to Chicago:
“This is an exciting time for us. Since New Zealand’s borders reopened, we’ve been slowly resuming services and to now be flying to all our international destinations is a milestone moment for us”.
“The North American network plays a key role in Air New Zealand’s rebuild, and as the third biggest city in the United States, Chicago is an important destination for us,”
“Customers flying into Chicago O’Hare International will benefit from convenient one-stop codeshare connections to around 100 destinations across the US via the airline’s strong partnership with United Airlines.”
“This resumed service also adds to Chicago O’Hare International’s ranking as the most connected airport in the world.”
“Chicago is an exciting destination with a lot to offer, from its fascinating history, world-class museums, and stunning architecture to internationally renowned jazz and blues scene and famous dishes, including the iconic deep-dish pizza.”
Overall, the numbers are slowly creeping up for O’Hare, but as seen in the data, there is still plenty of work left to do in terms of getting back to pre-pandemic levels.
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