{"id":1180,"date":"2021-03-29T18:11:09","date_gmt":"2021-03-29T23:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/?p=1180"},"modified":"2021-03-29T18:11:09","modified_gmt":"2021-03-29T23:11:09","slug":"und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/","title":{"rendered":"UND training flights help make GFK nation’s busiest airport in early March"},"content":{"rendered":"

‘And given that the United States is home to the world\u2019s busiest airports, we might have been No. 1 in the world earlier this month,’ University’s chief flight instructor says<\/h4>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Pleasant spring weather combined with UND flight training helped make Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) the busiest airport\u00a0 in the United States on March 1-3 as well as on March 8. UND archival photo.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Watch out, LaGuardia, and move over, O\u2019Hare:<\/p>\n

According to official Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) numbers, Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) was the busiest airport in the nation for a streak of days in early March.<\/p>\n

Specifically, GFK\u2019s combination of passenger flights and UND flight training traffic topped all airports in the United States on March 1-3 as well as on March 8.<\/p>\n

The feat was noticed by GFK\u2019s air traffic controllers, as all airports are required to report traffic data to the FAA. Air traffic numbers take weeks to become official, and today, the FAA confirmed the early March reports.<\/p>\n

In such a case, Grand Forks didn\u2019t trounce the likes of Atlanta and Chicago by numbers of passengers flown, but by the amount of instructions to take off or land \u2013 referred to as operations \u2013 issued by its control tower.<\/p>\n

During the multi-day streak, GFK\u2019s tower relayed as many as 2,000 instructions to pilots taking off and landing in a given day.<\/p>\n

Historically, UND\u2019s full schedule of student flights put GFK in the top 25 busiest airports nearly every year.<\/p>\n

And while the coronavirus pandemic shuttered UND Flight Operations for a time in 2020, the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences has since regained its momentum \u2013 topping the national operations charts a year later.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the reduced amount of airline traffic, general aviation airports have been moving up the busy list,\u201d said Jeremy Roesler, UND\u2019s chief flight instructor, referring to the University\u2019s year-round operation at GFK. \u201cWe have appeared in the top 10 in the past, but it\u2019s unusual to see this type of thing happen for consecutive days.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd given that the United States is home to the world\u2019s busiest airports, we might have been No. 1 in the world earlier this month.\u201d<\/p>\n

Team effort<\/h4>\n

In the world of air traffic control operations, a Piper Archer flown by a UND flight student and their instructor counts the same as a Boeing 777 airliner rolling down the runway.<\/p>\n

And in early March, skies were blue and wind was light \u2013 great conditions in the Red River Valley, given the season. UND currently has around 1,400 students on its flight schedule, and optimal conditions signify operations happening from 7 a.m. until 10:30 p.m. at the airport.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we get good weather, we\u2019re busy,\u201d said Roesler. \u201cBut we\u2019re only able to achieve those numbers when everyone is doing their part to prioritize safety, respecting rules and procedures.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, despite precautions in place to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the University is on pace to break a longstanding record for hours flown in a year.<\/p>\n

Roesler reiterates that the School\u2019s flight output is only possible through the team effort represented by UND Flight Operations and GFK. Roesler\u2019s staff of 250 flight instructors are merely one component of what he refers to as the \u201csheet music\u201d that keeps planes flying nearly every day.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe number of safe and successful flights we\u2019ve been able to accomplish is a great testament to the teamwork and support from our maintenance team, dispatchers, line support, air traffic control and Grand Forks International Airport,\u201d said Robert Kraus, dean of the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences.<\/p>\n

Safety first<\/h4>\n

As a UND alumni, Ryan Riesinger recognizes the relationships and partnerships required to achieve flight excellence year after year, especially through circumstances such as COVID-19. The executive director for the Grand Forks Regional Airport Authority said the University\u2019s growth has been impressive to witness first-hand. Before joining GFK five years ago, Riesinger graduated from UND in 1996 with a degree in airport management and worked at airports across the Midwest.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I look at the enrollment and the amount of activity going on through UND\u2019s flight training, I think it speaks to not only the students\u2019 passion for flying, but also their positive, long-term perspective,\u201d Riesinger said. \u201cEveryone has done a great job in getting students back on track after last spring.\u201d<\/p>\n

Riesinger went on to say that he\u2019s proud of the work performed by GFK staff that, in tandem with UND Flight Operations, maintains the airport\u2019s safe and renowned training environment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one thing to consider the amount of flights, but all of these pilots are training and learning at different levels,\u201d Riesinger said. \u201cTo function and accomplish our high amount of operations safely, that simply doesn\u2019t occur without our air traffic controllers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur controllers complete safely what every ATC does in the United States. On top of that, they\u2019re doing it in a busy environment with student pilots. They do a fantastic job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elizabeth Cory, public affairs specialist for the FAA, further remarked that keeping aircraft safe in the National Airspace System is the work of traffic managers everywhere, and that the tower team is proud to have a role in educating the next generation of aviation professionals. Also, many members of the team working at the Grand Forks Air Traffic Control Tower are graduates of the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe facility handles a high number of aircraft in this student-training environment with the highest level of safety. The facility is proud to work with UND, the airport\u2019s largest user, in continually evaluating the operation, and addressing any safety concerns that may arise,\u201d Cory said.<\/p>\n

–30–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

‘And given that the United States is home to the world\u2019s busiest airports, we might have been No. 1 in the world earlier this month,’ University’s chief flight instructor says Watch out, LaGuardia, and move over, O\u2019Hare: According to official Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) numbers, Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) was the busiest airport in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nUND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"‘And given that the United States is home to the world\u2019s busiest airports, we might have been No. 1 in the world earlier this month,’ University’s chief flight instructor says Watch out, LaGuardia, and move over, O\u2019Hare: According to official Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) numbers, Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) was the busiest airport in […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Press Releases\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/\/srv\/htdocs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Dodds\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Dodds\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"David Dodds\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857\"},\"headline\":\"UND training flights help make GFK nation’s busiest airport in early March\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":972,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/\",\"name\":\"UND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/6\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":533,\"caption\":\"For the past 37 years of competition in the National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA) event,\u00a0 better known as SAFECON or the National Championships of collegiate flying, UND has placed first or second 31 times. UND photo.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/2021\\\/03\\\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"UND training flights help make GFK nation’s busiest airport in early March\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/\",\"name\":\"Press Releases\",\"description\":\"University of North Dakota\u2019s official press release archive.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857\",\"name\":\"David Dodds\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/blogs.und.edu\\\/press-releases\\\/author\\\/ddodds\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"UND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"UND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases","og_description":"‘And given that the United States is home to the world\u2019s busiest airports, we might have been No. 1 in the world earlier this month,’ University’s chief flight instructor says Watch out, LaGuardia, and move over, O\u2019Hare: According to official Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) numbers, Grand Forks International Airport (GFK) was the busiest airport in […]","og_url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/","og_site_name":"Press Releases","article_published_time":"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/\/srv\/htdocs\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/19\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"David Dodds","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Dodds","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/"},"author":{"name":"David Dodds","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/#\/schema\/person\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857"},"headline":"UND training flights help make GFK nation’s busiest airport in early March","datePublished":"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/"},"wordCount":972,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/","url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/","name":"UND training flights help make GFK nation's busiest airport in early March - Press Releases","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg","datePublished":"2021-03-29T23:11:09+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/#\/schema\/person\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2021\/03\/200303-travis-gylling-084-small.jpg","width":800,"height":533,"caption":"For the past 37 years of competition in the National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA) event,\u00a0 better known as SAFECON or the National Championships of collegiate flying, UND has placed first or second 31 times. UND photo."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/2021\/03\/und-training-flights-help-make-gfk-nations-busiest-airport-in-early-march\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"UND training flights help make GFK nation’s busiest airport in early March"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/#website","url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/","name":"Press Releases","description":"University of North Dakota\u2019s official press release archive.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/#\/schema\/person\/5632aa99544c20fed40ab9495c660857","name":"David Dodds","url":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/author\/ddodds\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1180"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1180\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/press-releases\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}