Change in air carrier means more people can fly out of La Crosse

More seats are available on passenger jets flying in and out of the La Crosse Regional Airport starting early next month.

Air Wisconsin, which provides service for American Airlines flights out of La Crosse, is ending its service on April 4. Their aircraft carry 50 passengers.

Another carrier, Envoy Airlines, plans to take over the Air Wisconsin operations and use larger jets here in La Crosse.

JD Roberts, the Airport Business Manager, said he’s excited that more people can fly out of La Crosse with the change.

He told WIZM News the E-170 aircraft used by Envoy means an additional 26-52 seats per day for flights. The aircraft typically hold 70 passengers.

Roberts added that the aircraft are dual class which means Envoy offers business class and economy class seating.

The next 12-18 months are an important time for the airport he said.

Filling more seats on flights is one step in the process of adding routes or an additional airline, Roberts said.

The airport and city are having great conversations with Delta Airlines and one of its regional carriers, SkyWest Airlines, about coming back to La Crosse.

He explained that SkyWest works with Delta in an “at-risk” capacity. SkyWest could sell tickets for Delta and fly Delta marked aircraft but SkyWest would assume the risk for operations. That includes all the logistics and staffing needed behind the scenes for flight operations.

Discussions on the changes are part of the next Aviation Board meeting set for Monday at City Hall.

At Thursday night’s City Council meeting, members approved a resolution to contribute $250,000 to help fund a Minimum Revenue Guarantee program.

It is one way that cities can help bring another air carrier like Delta to an airport. Money from the fund would offset any losses by a carrier if ticket sales aren’t enough to support a route.

The goal, it said in the resolution, is to build the fund to $1.5 million.

La Crosse County is also providing $250,000 for the program with additional money coming from local businesses, municipalities, non-profits, and counties.

They’re also looking at a federal grant to partially fund the program.