Chico receives federal grant to resume commercial air service

CHICO, Calif. — The city of Chico is one step closer to establishing a commercial airline.

The city announced Friday that it has just received a $1 million federal grant to restore commercial air service from the Department of Transportation.

The funds bring the city’s revenue guarantee fund to just under $2 million, which will make the city more competitive to attract an airline, airport manager Tom Bar said.

The fund will be offered to airlines if they do not receive revenues in the initial phase.

“We know our community has been wanting this for years since he stayed, eventually he’s going to be here, we feel like it’s getting closer and closer,” he said. “If we’re successful like that, we’ll want to expand it, add more routes, so when that happens, maybe there will be more fundraising.”

Bahr says they’ve had positive talks with one particular airline, and he hopes the new money will make them more attractive to others.