Laughlin, Mesa Flights Return this Week at St. Cloud Airport

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) -- Activity at the St. Cloud Regional Airport is picking up again this week.

Airport Director Bill Towle says Monday a chartered flight to Laughlin, Nevada took off. He says the regular monthly service by Riverside Resorts is back now for the fall and winter months.

Also, the regular flights to Mesa, Arizona begin on Wednesday. There will be regular service on Wednesdays and Saturdays this fall with more frequent trips in the winter months.

Right now the schedule goes through mid-May and it's almost exactly the same as is was last year in terms of frequency.

The Allegiant flights to Punta Gorda, Florida will start up again on Wednesday, December 20th.

Towle says the airport continues to talk to the airline about getting year-round service to Mesa restored, and also about the possibility of adding other destinations.

The St. Cloud Regional Airport is on track to have one of its best years, in terms of activity, in 16 years. Towle says 2023 is pacing to be the second busiest year since 2007 when St. Cloud State University still had its aviation program at the airport.

If people recall, that's when St. Cloud State University had an aviation program out there.  After 2007 they discontinued that, and that reduced our operations greatly.

The St. Cloud Regional Airport provides an economic impact on the region of $44 million annually.

The biggest project underway right now at the airport is the construction of a new 10-space hangar which should be completed by June of 2024. Towle says they have a 25-airplane waiting list for a hangar space.

The airport currently has about 100 airplanes that are based there, with 12-15 helicopters stationed at the National Guard base, and on any given day an additional seven to 10 airplanes sitting on the ramp.

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The airport also just recently completed a $5 million taxiway upgrade.

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