Durango-La Plata County Airport looks different now than it did this time last year.
In the busy summer months, the parking lot normally holds almost 600 cars. The new normal since the outbreak of COVID-19 is about 70 cars, said Tony Vicari, director of aviation.
Tape marks on terminal floors indicate where passengers should stand to stay 6 feet apart, plastic sneeze guards separate airline workers from ticket holders and sanitizing stations line the walls.
But Durango-La Plata County Airport has held up well compared with other small airports across the state, Vicari said.
With significant downturns in revenue after the pandemic hit the Untied States, Vicari cut the budget to account for lower operational costs. But the airport has kept its entire staff with the help of a $2.5 million grant from the federal government, which Vicari said would cover seven to eight months of operating expenses and fill the loss in revenue.
However, American Airlines and United Airlines can’t say the same. The airlines use subcontractors for ground-handling staff, which have seen a heavy mix of layoffs and voluntary absences.
The airport is down to four outbound flights per day: two to Denver, one to Dallas and one to Phoenix. Normally, the airport sees six to eight outbound flights per day.
And despite a recent uptick in the number of travelers passing through the airport, Vicari said seasonal flights to Los Angeles or Houston won’t be available this summer.
Airports in Aspen, Eagle and Montrose closed the operation of American Airlines for the months of April and May because it was not profitable enough. Delta Airlines also closed operations in Aspen during that time, but United Airlines has continued to serve all three cities.
The sharp decline in air travel began March 13, the start of COVID-19 travel restrictions, Vicari said. At its lowest point, passenger traffic decreased by 95%.
“April was the bottom,” he said.
But passenger traffic makes up only 25% of the airport’s revenue – fixed rent for businesses operating out of the airport makes up a significant amount.
Overall, the fixed revenue sources are down 39% for the year, or about $1.7 million. But the airport, as an enterprise fund that does not rely on tax dollars, is positioned to weather the downturn, Vicari said.
“None of that impacts us; we are completely self-sufficient,” Vicari said. The airport has $4 million cash on hand and no current debt.
Cargo planes for companies like FedEx haven’t been interrupted, Vicari said. And helicopters that fight forest fires also continue to operate out of Durango-La Plata County Airport.
The airport used the opportunity of low-traffic levels to renovate the restrooms and upgrade the wastewater system using an airport improvement grant from the Federal Aviation Administration.
But the number of airline travelers is slowly gaining, Vicari said. In May, the airport was at 13.6% compared with the same month in 2019, up from a low of 5% earlier this spring.
“That’s triple what we saw in April,” Vicari said. Nationwide, most airports remain at only 10% of their 2019 numbers.
The first week of June saw an increase to 22% of 2019 numbers, surpassing the airport’s projections.
The slow, steady growth of passengers is more manageable than an onslaught of travelers at once, Vicari said.
“We will be able to see what’s working and what’s not,” Vicari said, “but consumer confidence is not fully re-established.”
The airport has undertaken considerable cleaning measures, but people are still wary of flying in an enclosed space for hours with the same recycled air, Vicari said.
“The airport has done everything it can to make this a safe environment, but flight, like anything else in our post-COVID world, will be an individual decision,” Vicari said.
Cortez resident Dawn Russell said she felt comfortable flying with the measures airlines and airports are taking to disinfect surfaces and keep people socially distant, as she waited for her flight to Denver. Her final flight was to Spokane, where she would embark on a photography trek through the Washington wilderness.
“If I was going somewhere with more people, I wouldn’t go,” Russell said.
She and the lone other traveler ordered delivery from a nearby deli because food options inside the airport were closed.
“Everything is probably more sanitized now than it ever has been,” said Emily Willis, a traveler from Atlanta.
Vicari said he doesn’t know how long masks and social distancing will be mandatory, but “they are here for the foreseeable future, possibly until there is a vaccine.”
But cleanliness will be a permanent focus for airports, as well as touchless travel. Many travelers already use smartphone boarding passes and online check-ins, but Vicari is considering other ways to lower the number of contact points.
“We can’t solve the proximity of people, but we can eliminate touch points,” Vicari said.
Whether by car or airplane,travel is increasing in Durango.
Traffic in April on South Camino del Rio, near Santa Rita Park, was down about 50% from 2019 levels, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation, but it is now only about 20% less from the same time last year.
ehayes@durangoherald.com
