County hears airport study showing record passenger growth and options to recruit more routes

The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 25 heard a retention and leakage study for the California Redwood Coast Humboldt County Airport (ACV) that found the airport posted record passenger volume in 2024 and is retaining a larger share of local travelers than it had before the pandemic. The study, presented by consultant Jack Penney of Volare Aviation and county economic development staff Diana Rios, concluded the airport could support more departures if competitive incentives and carrier recruitment continue.

The airport “is averaging 351 passengers a day who are departing from ACV,” Penney told the board, citing the study’s data. The presentation said 41% of the county’s air travelers used ACV in 2024, up from 23% in 2019, and that average fares out of ACV have fallen from $313 to $231 over about a decade.

County Economic Development Coordinator Diana Rios told the board the study will guide short-term carrier outreach and noted the county had already assembled a Small Community Air Service Development (SCASDP) grant package totaling roughly $1.25 million (federal grant plus local match) to support targeted service development. Penney said the biggest commercial-service gap is northbound service and named Seattle-Tacoma as the top recruitment priority; other targets included Salt Lake City and restored service to Portland and leisure routes such as San Diego and Las Vegas.

The consultants outlined headwinds to growth, including industry-wide aircraft and pilot supply constraints and strong national competition for start-up incentives. Penney said airlines now decide route deployment against hundreds of airports nationwide and that incentives commonly offered to start routes average roughly $2.7 million per route. The county’s $1.25 million package is competitive but below that market average, he said, and stressed the importance of leveraging local marketing and usage to make the business case to carriers.

Board members said they supported continued recruitment and incentives but requested better public messaging about the expected returns on any incentives, including parking and federal airport grants that grow when enplanements rise. The board voted 4-0 to accept and file the presentation and directed staff to continue airline outreach using the study’s findings.

Ending: County staff said they will use the study to guide airline outreach and marketing work already funded by the board and return with implementation steps as negotiations with carriers progress.