City and airport officials hope to add more routes in the near future to destinations like Seattle, Denver and Dallas. In an effort to bring those flights about, the city has applied for a $400,000 grant from the U. S. Department of Transportation. The grant, which comes from the Small Community Air Service Development Program would help with route development.
“We would use that money to help offset start-up costs,” Jon Greiner, Airport Manager, said.
In addition, Greiner said officials hope to have five flights a day over the next few years. The Provo Airport has had great success in offering five or six flights a week to Mesa, and he believes Ogden would be successful with more — not just to Mesa, but to other destinations as well.
“If we get to that, we would like to build a new terminal so we’ll have more of a presence.”
This hope for expansion comes after the 2017 announcement to add new Allegiant Air routes. According to Jon Greiner, it was the biggest news at the airport in 2017. In the fall, the airline announced two new flights a week to Las Vegas and two to Los Angeles.
The Las Vegas flights have since been discontinued because of lack of bookings. That route may be reconsidered in the future, Greiner said.
The Los Angeles flights, on the other hand, have proven to be popular and generally are about 80 percent full. Greiner said the popularity has been, “just about where we expected it to be. It wasn’t as robust as the Mesa one when the Mesa one started five years ago, but it’s doing well.”
Since 2012, when Allegiant Air began offering two flights a week from Ogden to Mesa, those flights have been 90 percent booked, Greiner said.
Salt Lake International Airport currently has about 325 outbound flights a day, Greiner noted, adding that 25 percent of the people who fly on those flights live closer to Ogden than they do to Salt Lake.
“If we offer an alternative and it’s more convenient, they may consider us for travel.”
In addition to commercial flights, the Ogden-Hinckley Airport is home to other services. Kemp Jet Services, CB Jet Center and Mountain Valley Aviation provide such things as fueling services, hangar facilities and pilot lounges.
The airport is Utah’s busiest municipal airport for private planes, with more than 400 general aviation planes calling the facility home. Three flight schools, Axiom Aviation, Cornerstone Aviation and ATP Flight School offer training for those seeking private and commercial training.
Aerospace and defense companies, Northrop Grumman, Williams International, and Borsight, also have operations at the airport.
Utah Airways offers charter flights to a number of destinations, including Arches, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Zion.
