BURLINGTON, Iowa — The Southeast Iowa Regional Airport in Burlington has a new commercial airline service for its passengers.
The Burlington airport is one of nearly 200 communities across the United States that participates in the "Essential Air Service" program through the U.S. Department of Transportation.
That federal program helps connect smaller communities to hubs, like St. Louis and Chicago.
On the south side of Burlington, a smaller airport has its perks.
"It's a huge time saver, that's for sure," said Jonathan Langton, a first-time flyer through Burlington.
Langton is flying home to Texas from a business trip to Iowa. He's connecting through Chicago on his way home.
"It booked through Expedia just like anything else. You know, it was straightforward," Langton said.
Sabino Gonzalez had a business trip to Iowa, too. He traveled here with his coworker, Laurie Waskan.
"It's so nice to just get here and then ten minutes away we're where we need to be, so yeah, it's great that Cape Air is there to help us out," Gonzalez said.
Cape Air is the new commercial airline in Burlington. It was selected among three bidders, after the previous contract with Air Choice One expired. Cape Air started its service to Burlington on Feb. 1, 2022.
"It offers flights to people not just in this community but surrounding communities, a way to make their connections to the world through St. Louis and Chicago," said Sara Sandburg, the airport's director.
Sandburg said the "Essential Air Service" is a government-subsidized program to bring air service to smaller communities. She also said Cape Air brings new benefits to its frequent flyers.
"Should you want to book a flight from Burlington to Charlotte, you can go online to American or United and it will ticket your full itinerary all the way through," Sandburg said. "They have the agreements to take your bags and check them all the way through."
Because Cape Air has those agreements to handle bags with two other airlines, passengers only need to go through the security checkpoint once during their trip, an added convenience for travelers making multiple connections, Sandburg said. Passengers avoid the need to leave the secured areas to retrieve a bag and go through security checkpoints again before making a connection, she added.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, there is new security for the airport, with this new airline contract set for the next four years.
Sandburg said the airport's passenger rates looked similar to the national trend.
"We probably saw more than 80 percent drop when that started in March 2020. We did see an incline toward the end of that year, little bit, but then it fell off again," Sandburg said.
Sandburg expects those numbers to rise with the addition of Cape Air, eventually to numbers higher than before the pandemic, Sandburg said.
For Gonzalez, though, having this airport and service is not just about the convenience.
"You get to have access to a lot of smaller places that aren't necessarily on the map," Gonzales said.
In Burlington, added convenience is taking off.
There is at least one round trip from Burlington to both Chicago and St. Louis every day, according to the flight schedule provided by Sandburg.
The federal government currently subsidizes approximately 60 communities in Alaska and approximately 115 communities in the contiguous 48 United States that otherwise would not have regularly scheduled air service.