It may never be bustling, but a busier terminal with more flights to more destinations may be the reality at the Chico municipal airport somewhere down the line Butte County officials were told Tuesday morning.
The bullish assessment was offered to the Butte County Board of Supervisors by Tom Reich, a representative of AvPorts, a management firm hired by Chico to run the airport after Skywest airlines pulled the plug on its passenger service last December.
“It’s never going to be Sacramento,” Reich said. “It’s probably never going to be to the level of service you get in Santa Rosa, but having four, five or six flights a day on a regional type aircraft to one or two hubs, maybe a flight a few times a week to Las Vegas; things of that level, I think over the next five years are very doable.”
Reich said Skywest’s decision to fly turbo-prop planes on the route between Chico and San Francisco was a poor fit as turbo-props often get grounded by foggy conditions. Regional jets would not have that problem.
Flights to San Francisco may not return, however. Reich said Los Angeles may prove a more viable destination for carriers than SFO. Many local fliers are heading for Southern California. Additionally, LAX offers more options for onward domestic and international travel.
AvPorts is scheduled to give another update to the Chico City Council later this year.