News · Traverse City
Traverse City’s Cherry Capital Airport board votes Oct. 27 on a $750,000 grant aimed at nonstop flights to Los Angeles or San Francisco
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — Cherry Capital Airport’s board is scheduled to vote Tuesday, Oct. 27, on accepting a $750,000 federal grant meant to lure an airline into flying seasonal nonstops from Traverse City to Los Angeles or San Francisco, Spectrum News reported.
The money comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Small Community Air Service Development Program. It works as a revenue guarantee: if an airline flies the route and falls short of its revenue targets, the grant covers the difference. Once the board accepts it, airport officials have three years to negotiate a deal.
United Airlines has signaled support in a letter to the airport, but no agreement has been reached, according to Spectrum News.
Why the airport says it works. CEO Kevin Klein said the program is designed “to incentivize carriers to take a risk on routes” they would otherwise consider too uncertain. He said the airport used similar grants to start service to Denver and Dallas. “It’s a win for Michigan, but also it’s a win for northern Michigan, including our destination,” Klein told the station, adding that West Coast flights would help market the region in those cities.
Room to grow. The push comes as the airport builds Concourse B, a 68,000-square-foot addition with four gates that broke ground April 24 and is scheduled to open in spring 2028. The airport puts the total cost at $120 million: $87 million for the terminal addition and $33 million for site work, apron paving and contingency.
The airport says its existing gates were sized for 30- to 70-seat aircraft and holdrooms of about 250 to 300 people, while it now handles single planes with about 200 seats. It says the terminal runs at roughly 250% of capacity from June through August.
Who pays. According to the airport’s project FAQ, the expansion bonds are repaid with airport revenues such as passenger facility charges, airline and rental-car leases, parking and landing fees, and the airport receives no local tax dollars for operations.
What’s next. If the board accepts the grant Oct. 27, talks with airlines begin. Any new route would be announced by the airline and the airport.
Sources:
Spectrum News, Jack Caron, “Cherry Capital Airport eyes nonstop west coast flights,” Sept. 30, 2026 (grant, Oct. 27 vote, United letter, Klein quotes), https://spectrumlocalnews.com/mi/michigan/news/2026/09/30/cherry-capital-airport-west-coast
The Ticker, “California Dreamin’ at Cherry Capital Airport” (background), https://www.traverseticker.com/news/california-dreamin-at-cherry-capital-airport/
Cherry Capital Airport, “TVC: Gates to the Future FAQ” (cost, bonds, no local tax dollars, capacity), https://tvcairport.com/tvc-gates-to-the-future-faq/
Cherry Capital Airport, “Terminal Addition Program” (Concourse B size, gates, schedule), https://tvcairport.com/tvc-gates-to-the-future/
Photo: Wikimedia Commons user “my name”, “Traverse City Airport II.JPG,” Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped and color-adjusted, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Traverse_City_Airport_II.JPG
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