The ball is now in the U.S. Department of Transportation's court when it comes to deciding whether to grant the request of domestic airlines to significantly trim certain cities and airport from their respective service lists.
And, ironically, it comes at a time when the majority of the country is starting to reopen for business in the wake of the effects from the coronavirus pandemic.
The government comment period on the matter ended on Thursday, leaving the matter to a decision by the DOT, which has not said when it will issue a ruling according to USA Today.
Airlines are looking to drop service to conserve some desperately needed cash, with demand for air travel having dropped to unprecedented lows. At one point, screenings by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) were off 94 percent compared to a similar date last year. But as a condition of accepting federal grants and loans as part of the CARES Act stimulus package, U.S. carriers needed to maintain the same amount of service it offered prior to the coronavirus impact as well as seek permission from the DOT to drop routes.
But the cuts could be devastating to small airports.
According to USA Today, Anthony Dudas, the airport director in Williston, North Dakota, said that the town is a gateway to the rich Bakken oil fields. Before the pandemic, it had five daily flights from United and Delta. Now, those flights have been reduced to one a day for each of the two airlines. If Delta is granted permission to suspend service, the community will be down even further - serving a $275 million airport that opened last year.
"While we understand the need for air carriers to have flexibility in adjusting schedules and services, we believe the impact from significantly reducing air service to western North Dakota will be enormous," Dudas wrote.
Here is the list of cities that could be dropped.
ALASKA AIRLINES
Charleston, South Carolina
Columbus, Ohio
El Paso, Texas
New Orleans
San Antonio, Texas
ALLEGIANT AIR
New Orleans
Ogdensburg, New York
Palm Springs, California
San Antonio
Springfield, Illinois
Tucson, Arizona
AMERICAN AIRLINES
Aspen, Colorado
Eagle, Colorado
Montrose/Delta, Colorado
Worcester, Massachusetts
CAPE AIR
Portland, Maine
Corvus Airlines
Goodnews Bay, Alaska
Kodiak, Alaska
Napakiak, Alaska
Napaskiak, Alaska
Platinum, Alaska
DELTA AIR LINES
Aspen, Colorado
Bangor, Maine
Erie, Pennsylvania
Flint, Michigan
Fort Smith, Arkansas
Lincoln, Nebraska
New Bern/Morehead/Beaufort, North Carolina
Peoria, Illinois
Santa Barbara, California
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Williston, North Dakota
ELITE AIRWAYS
Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida
FRONTIER AIRLINES
Greenville/Spartanburg, South Carolina
Mobile, Alabama
Palm Springs
Portland, Maine
Tyler, Texas
JETBLUE AIRWAYS
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Palm Springs
Sacramento, California
Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida
Worcester, Massachusetts
Seaborne Virgin Islands
Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands
Christiansted, Virgin Islands
Culebra, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
Vieques, Puerto Rico
SILVER AIRWAYS
Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands
Huntsville, Alabama
Key West, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida
Tampa, Florida
SPIRIT AIRLINES
Asheville, North Carolina
Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands
Christiansted, Virgin Islands
Greensboro/High Point, North Carolina
Plattsburgh, New York
SUN AIR EXPRESS
Nashville, Tennessee
SUN COUNTRY AIRLINES
Madison, Wisconsin
Philadelphia
Portland, Oregon
Sacramento
St. Louis, Missouri
UNITED AIR LINES
Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton, Pennsylvania
Charlotte Amalie
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Fairbanks, Alaska
Hilton Head, South Carolina
Ithaca/Cortland, New York
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Key West, Florida
Lansing, Michigan
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Rochester, Minnesota
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