As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, commercial flights have been suspended between Prescott Regional Airport and Los Angeles (LAX).
However, commercial air service between Prescott and Denver continues as scheduled. Those flights can be booked online at United.com or by visiting the ticket counter at the Prescott Airport Terminal Building, 6500 MacCurdy Drive, just off Highway 89 on the northeast edge of the city.
A press release issued by the City of Prescott stated that continued challenges in California caused by COVID-19 have resulted in United Airlines suspending service to and from Los Angeles, effective April 12.
Airport Director Robin Sobotta said in recent weeks, LAX flights had been operating at less than a 10% load factor, with fewer than 20 passengers aboard most flights.
At the time, the Denver flights were carrying more passengers than flights to LAX. Sobotta explained that United Express flights, operated by SkyWest Airlines, offered passengers flying to Denver more options for potential connections than those at LAX.
Overall, airport officials were pleased with passenger enplanement numbers for the first three months of 2020. They stood at 4,772. For the airport to receive significantly more federal money, it must have more than 10,000 enplanements for the calendar year.
Meanwhile, passengers flying into Prescott, or elsewhere in Arizona, are being quarantined if they fly from areas where a substantial community spread of COVID-19 has been documented. Signs in the airport let air passengers know of the executive order issued in early April by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey.
Airport Terminal Construction Continues Despite Reduced Flights
Even though flights and passenger arrivals and departures are down, construction work on the new $15 million passenger terminal continues. The only delays were caused by snow and wet weather in late winter. Begun the first week of January, excavation and infrastructure for the 18,000-square-foot terminal is fully underway. Old hangars and shade structures were demolished. New entry roadways are being prepared.
Sobotta said she was pleased that construction delays had been minimal and that supplies and materials were being delivered on time. “This airport project will employ hundreds,” she said. “It is a great economic stimulus for the community.”
Terminal construction managers from Phoenix-based Willmeng Construction are working with Fann Construction, a major Prescott business owned by prominent local leader Mike Fann and his family.
The new terminal will replace the historic but much smaller structure that was built in the 1940s.
Sobotta said if no major delays occur, the new terminal will be open for occupancy in mid-March 2021.
City Receives $1 Million For Airport
A side effect of the COVID 19 pandemic is the CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act), which has made more than $1 million available to the City of Prescott for the airport. Up to another half million dollars is being requested.
Sobotta said the money will be used to cover several capital projects, noting that there are federal restrictions on how the funds can be spent.
Near the end of 2019, the city had received a $10 million federal grant to cover most of the cost of the terminal. The state also granted $1 million. The city allocated $3.5 million from its budget funds. The CARES funds can be used to cover some of the city’s portion of the terminal cost. In total, CARES funding for Arizona has amounted to $220 million to go to Arizona airports.
Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, through a press release in mid-April, said, “Today’s funding will save thousands of Arizona jobs, helping stabilize Arizona’s economy while we fight the coronavirus pandemic.“
Other projects will soon be underway at Ernest A. Love Field. Bids have been requested for the relocation of Taxiway Charlie, which will be moved about 75 feet from the runway. That project is anticipated to cost $14 million to $15 million, with construction to begin in August 2020. QCBN
By Ray Newton, QCBN
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