RBRA photo

Air traffic at Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport remains well below the numbers of one year ago, but airport officials say there is some long-term reason for optimism amid the downturn. About 13,500 passengers flew into or out of ROA in June, and that is close to an 80% drop from June of last year. Airport Spokesperson Brad Boettcher says airlines serving Roanoke have cut back passenger capacity here by more than 50%, but the only non-stop route that has been dropped is to New York City. More from WFIR’s Evan Jones: