Yellowstone Regional Airport trying to lure Delta Airlines back

Aaron Buck, director of the Yellowstone Regional Airport in Cody, recently approached the Big Horn County commissioners to discuss the possible return of Delta Airlines, which left in 2021.

“We’re working very hard to get Delta back to the community,” said Buck. “We’ve been told by Delta if they come back that it will be a MRG (Minimum Revenue Guarantee). As a community we will have to guarantee that Delta makes X dollars when they come.” 

The exact dollar amount is not known. Buck said the goal is to raise $300,000. He believes that is what the local portion would be. The state has a program that would do a 40% grant match. 

An airport cannot put money into the MRG, according to Buck. This is why Cody/Yellowstone Air Service Improvement Resources (CY AIR) was created.  Park County has been asked to give $50,000 a year for two years. The Park County Travel Council has committed $100,000 for the next two years. Businesses in the community will be approached. 

Buck said he was before the commission to ask for $10,000 or whatever the county would be willing to contribute to help support the project. “Whatever you think it is worth to your businesses and constituents,” he said. “I’ll leave it there for questions.” 

Commission chair Bruce Jolley asked if municipalities had been approached. Buck noted that the City of Cody gave $5,000 for administration purposes. He said there are plans to go to Washakie County. He said it would be a good idea to talk to the towns. 

Jolley asked about the current air services at the airport. Buck said United has four flights a day. The load factor of those flights is 80%. That percentage is attractive to airlines. The Delta flights would connect to Salt Lake City. The airline changed its business model to include first-class seating on all flights. They sold the planes that used to fly into Cody. If they come back, a different sized plane with first class seating would be used.

Buck said the goal is to find an airline that will go west. If not Delta, another airline would be considered. It would be more convenient for people to go to Cody versus Billings; plus, they would not be spending money out of state. 

County Airport Manager Paul Thur asked Buck, “If you get the $300,000, how long does that pot of money last?” Buck responded that if the flights did really well, none of the money would be spent on the MRG.

“Basically, the goal is to find a route that we think will be profitable or at least not lose a whole bunch of money,” he said, adding that, if the flight loads remain at 80%, the money from the MRG fund would be minimal, to the tune of $25,000 to $50,000 per year. 

Commissioner Deb Craft asked if the requests for funding the MRG are a two-year commitment from the entities, resulting in a two-year commitment from Delta. Buck said that the goal would be to show Delta in those two years they can make money with Cody flights so they would want to continue service. 

Thur asked what happens if the MRG goal is reached but Delta doesn’t come. Would it be easier to attract another airline? Buck explained that the first choice is Delta, with service to Salt Lake City, but they are open to an airline that would connect at Dallas/Fort Worth. If neither works out, they would work with United to get a flight to Chicago. 

Buck asked if anyone in the room would like to be a part of CY AIR to help with the project. Jolley told Buck the county is in budget season but would take it under consideration and get back to him.