Air service abruptly ends at Pierre, Watertown airports

PIERRE — The only commercial air carrier to provide flights to South Dakota's capital city has abruptly ceased its service.

California Pacific Airlines temporarily ceased to operate on Thursday, leaving South Dakota passengers stranded. Pierre Mayor Steve Harding announced on Sunday that the air carrier has ended its service to Pierre, and the city is now without air service indefinitely. California Pacific has a federal Essential Air Service contract to serve the Pierre and Watertown airports through July 2020.

California Pacific didn't return requests for comment from the Argus Leader.

While Pierre is without air service, residents of central South Dakota will have to travel to Rapid City or Sioux Falls to catch a flight, or to Minneapolis or Denver if they're flying out of a major hub. Pierre officials are working with the DOT and South Dakota's delegation in Washington, D.C., to resolve the air service issue as quickly as possible.

"Whether we're talking personal, business, government or emergency travel, air service is essential for Pierre and other communities in central South Dakota that we serve. Access and reliability are huge," Harding said in a statement.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is expediting the search for a new air carrier to provide service to the two airports. Airlines have until Jan. 30 to submit proposals to the federal agency, and Harding said Sky West has recently visited Pierre to view the airport.

Residents flying in and out of Pierre aren't the only ones impacted by the end of California Pacific's service to South Dakota. About 20 people working for the airline, Transportation Security Administration and in law enforcement at the Pierre airport have either been furloughed or reassigned as a result of the situation, according to Harding. California Pacific also owes the city of Pierre $38,000 for rent, landing fees and passenger facility charges, according to the city.

Pierre city officials were told the air carrier was having "financial difficulties" when it canceled all flights indefinitely last Thursday, according to city spokeswoman Brooke Bohnenkamp. 

Aerodynamics Inc., which operates California Pacific Airlines, has temporarily furloughed all its employees for three weeks beginning Jan. 18, according to the city of Pierre. The U.S. DOT received notification on Jan. 17 that California Pacific Airlines can no longer serve the Pierre and Watertown airports, according to a DOT request for proposals. 

"Both communities currently have no scheduled air service, and there is no information indicating that it will resume," according to the request.

The federal Essential Air Service program requires minimum air service to small airports around the country, subsidized through taxes on air passengers' tickets and airplane fuel, as well as taxes on international airlines that use the United States' air space. California Pacific was chosen by the DOT to provide service to the Pierre and Watertown airports from August 2018 through July 2020 for a total subsidy of $7 million.

This isn't the first time Pierre and Watertown have had problems with California Pacific's service at the two airports.

The air carrier temporarily stopped flights to the two cites in December and Harding and Watertown Mayor Sarah Caron told the DOT that the air carrier is in debt to multiple public and private entities. The two mayors requested on Jan. 10 that the DOT issue an emergency request for proposals for a new air carrier due to California Pacific's worsening financial situation, according to DOT documents. The DOT issued that emergency request with an original deadline of Feb. 13, but it moved the deadline up to the end of January after it received California Pacific's notice on Thursday that it would no longer serve the two airports, according to DOT documents.