The Wilmington International Airport’s new nonstop route to Boston has taken flight and is on an expanded schedule, airport officials announced Thursday.

The American Airlines’ nonstop service between ILM and Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) is now running five days a week, a change from the airline's original plan to run a Saturday-only nonstop service, according to a news release.

The BOS nonstop flights do not run on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, said Gary Broughton, ILM's deputy airport director, in an email. 

The nonstop flight began this month, adding to a growing number of routes and flight capacity by ILM’s three commercial airlines, American, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines.

Many routes have been reinstated this year following an uptick in demand for flights, which are growing the number of travelers through ILM.

“It does appear that due to pent-up demand, our leisure travelers are anxious to return to normal vacation travel," Broughton said. "The return of full business travel as well will certainly improve our passenger numbers. We are excited at this earlier-than-expected rebound."

The most recent passenger figures for May show a stark increase in passengers year over year.

Travelers in May totaled nearly 78,900, an increase from the nearly 14,400 passengers flying in and out of ILM in May 2020 during the early months of the pandemic. The May figures, however, are still down 21% from the more than 99,700 people traveling through ILM in May 2019.

Airport officials say those figures are creeping back up to normal levels.

"According to June trends, ILM’s passenger counts are hovering around 95-99% of 2019 levels," the news release stated. "Passenger numbers are back to pre-COVID levels."

ILM’s recovery from the pandemic’s impact on air travel is above the national average, according to the release. "ILM rebounded at a rate 12% higher than the national average," airport officials said.

And to handle the extra foot traffic at ILM, the airport recently added a third TSA lane at its terminal that can be “opened at the TSA’s supervisor’s discretion,” officials said.

The additional lane will help accommodate peaks in passenger screening demand at ILM.

"We are pleased to see our numbers rebound so strongly,” Broughton said in the release. "Our team remains committed to providing a safe, clean, and exceptional experience for our customers and are excited to welcome back travelers to ILM."