Boardings at Sloulin Field International Airport were down in July compared to boardings at the same time last year. Other than the 2008 totals, however, July boardings were far higher than any other in Williston in the past decade.

There were a total of 996 boardings at the airport in July, according to numbers recently released by the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission. The number of boardings was down from 1,139 in July 2008, a drop of just over 12.5 percent.

Airport Manafer Rick Marburger said he was pleased with the numbers.

“I think it’s due to having more drilling activity. I think that’s really about it,” said Marburger.

Marburger also said that a reason for the numbers being down from last year is the fact that there the airport is currently running three daily flights as compared to four flights last year. “There’s only so many people you can fit on the planes. When they get full, they’re full,” said Marburger.

July marks the fourth month in a row that numbers are down from 2008. Despite the numbers being down each month, they still are higher than any other previous year.

The number of July boardings was 996 compared to 1,139 in 2008, but it is much higher than the previous high during the past decade. The previous record of July boardings for Sloulin Field was 768 in 2007.

Strong numbers were not only found in Williston in July. Last month, airport boardings in the state of North Dakota set a 10-year record. According to state numbers, 71,815 passengers flew in July, up 9.2 percent from 2008.

The only other airports in North Dakota that experienced a decline from 2008 were in Dickinson and Jamestown, and in both cases the decline was just over 2 percent.