Delta cuts back on La Crosse service, as summer air travel remains down

A summertime downturn in air travel through La Crosse could get worse, with word that Delta Airlines has cut back its local service to just one flight a day to Minneapolis.

Delta suspended its flights between La Crosse and Detroit several months ago.

Shortages in airline staffing have been blamed for a decline in passenger flights around the country.

The La Crosse Airport had 5,189 commercial passengers in July, which was the second lowest monthly figure for this year, compared to 5012 travelers in June.

The total for this year through July is just over 39,000. Before the pandemic, LSE had two consecutive years where over 95,000 passengers rode on flights through La Crosse.

In a typical July, 7,000-9,000 would take airline flights through La Crosse.