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Canyonlands Airport Board recommends SkyWest as its top pick for next EAS contract
Summary
After hearing consultant findings, resident and business survey results and public comment, the Canyonlands Airport Board voted by voice to recommend SkyWest (code-share service to Salt Lake and Denver) to the County Commission; the motion passed with one abstention and no recorded opposition.
The Canyonlands Airport Board voted to recommend SkyWest as the community’s preferred carrier for the next Essential Air Service (EAS) contract and will advise the Grand County Commission to forward that recommendation to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The vote followed a multi-hour discussion that included a market analysis from consultant Luke Schmidt, public comments, an economic-development review of resident and business surveys, and a subcommittee report that had earlier endorsed SkyWest. Bill Winfield, Grand County commissioner and board liaison, told the board the three-commissioner subcommittee voted unanimously for the SkyWest code-share option.
Schmidt told the board he compiled a catchment-area profile spanning five counties and ran leakage and origin-destination data to show where local passengers currently travel. He said a parking-lot survey at Grand Junction suggested that, conservatively, roughly 22,000 passengers per year in the region might be using Grand Junction instead of Canyonlands, and he compared how four bidders (Contour, SkyWest, Denver Air Connection and Advanced Air) would serve key hubs.
Melissa Jeffers, the county’s economic development director, explained two survey efforts: a targeted business survey (177 responses) and a resident-facing algorithmic quiz. Jeffers warned the board of data-quality differences between the targeted business responses and broader social-media waves, but said the resident algorithm frequently matched SkyWest for users who prioritized code-share connectivity and frequent-flyer access.
Public commenters represented a mix of views. Ben Ghosh, a resident, told the board he favors SkyWest because it offers single-ticket connections to major hubs. Former commissioner Roy Axman urged caution and questioned the survey methodology and historical carrier reliability, while board member Rachel Plaxman argued Contour had proven responsive to local scheduling and projected higher passenger volumes.
Board members weighing the options cited several deciding factors: code-share connectivity to legacy carriers and larger aircraft capacity (favored by proponents of SkyWest) versus Contour’s interline partners and higher projected passenger counts under certain scenarios. Several members emphasized the need for stronger contract metrics and enforcement to prevent past service lapses from recurring.
A formal motion to recommend SkyWest was made and passed by voice; there was no recorded opposition and one member was noted as abstaining. The board will forward the recommendation to the County Commission; the U.S. DOT will then run its comment and review process before awarding the new EAS contract. Staff said the current Contour contract runs through Sept. 30 and DOT aims to have any awarded carrier in place for an Oct. 1 contract start, subject to the federal timetable.
The board instructed staff to document the recommendation and to pursue contracting language that includes performance metrics and remedies to protect continued service and reliability.
