New air carrier to start in fall at Cape Airport

The Cape Girardeau Regional Airport will officially switch carriers later in the fall.

Katrina Amos, airport manager, announced at the Airport Advisory Board meeting Tuesday the airport will likely be switching to Contour Aviation toward the end of October or the beginning of November. No exact date has been set at this time.

It was just more than seven weeks ago Cape Girardeau City Council members voted unanimously to approve the change following a recommendation from the airport board. The change was necessitated following current carrier SkyWest announcing a termination of service at the airport -- one of 29 communities to receive such a notice -- earlier this year.

SkyWest officials did announce they would be interested in rescinding the termination but were unable to give a clear commitment on whether or not they would be able to honor the original contract signed in June 2021.

SkyWest was operating on a waiver granted to them by the airport, which allowed the carrier to reduce the number of flights below the threshold set by the initial contract. Currently, SkyWest is approved to tag service to Cape Girardeau with two other airports in Paducah, Kentucky and Decatur, Illinois, in order to meet the minimum flight requirements.

The official order for the carrier switch from current provider SkyWest to Contour is still pending at the U.S. Department of Transportation, Amos said at the meeting. Cape Girardeau is next up on the approval list, she said, and Amos expects to hear word in the next couple of weeks.

The delay is because of the number of airports in the country going through the same process as Cape Girardeau, switching from SkyWest to Contour.

Current SkyWest employees will be considered for positions at the new carrier, Amos said. The process will not likely begin until after the order is officially approved by DOT.

"I think what's important for people to know is that the current employees will have an opportunity to apply and interview, and Contour will definitely give them high consideration when selecting the staff for Contour service," Amos said.