Since taking over Feb. 23, 2015, Air Choice one has doubled the amount of passengers that Great Lakes Airlines were able to produce in 2013, according to Rhonda Chambers, director of aviation.

Great Lakes preceded Air Choice One as the Fort Dodge Regional Airport’s carrier. It suspended its service to Fort Dodge in 2014.

Air Choice one accomplished the feat of increasing passengers with half the number of seats, Chambers said.

“It just shows that people are using the service and that this is the direction we want to go,” Chambers said.

-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson Jake Mohr, Fort Dodge Regional Airport operations worker, kneels along the commercial aviation ramp. The ramp is to be completely reconstructed. It was originally built in 1952.

Air Choice One, based in St. Louis, operates Cessna Caravan planes that seat nine people.

According to Chambers, 6,890 passengers boarded Air Choice One planes in 2016, up from 5,294 in 2015.

Since 1976, the highest number of enplanements were achieved in 2000 with nearly 12,000.

In January, it was announced that the partnership between Air Choice One and the Fort Dodge Regional Airport will continue for four more years.

At that time, the U.S. Department of Transportation selected Air Choice One to provide flights to and from Fort Dodge as part of the Essential Air Service program.

“I think a big difference in working with Air Choice One rather than those other carriers is that Air Choice One is actually a true partner with us,” Chambers said. “They truly do care. They care about getting us the right service for our community, and they listen.”

Third destination added

In 2016, for the first time ever, the Fort Dodge Regional Airport began offering destinations to airports in three major cities: the Chicago O’Hare International Airport in Illinois, the Lambert St. Louis International Airport and the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport.

“It’s unprecedented for Fort Dodge to have three cities to go to,” Chambers said. “It’s never happened. It’s not just three cities, it’s three large cities.”

For about 30 years Northwest Airlink, Delta Airlines and Great Lakes Airlines provided flights from Fort Dodge to the Twin Cities. But when Great Lakes left, the connection to Minneapolis was lost.

The addition of Minneapolis as a destination should prove successful, according to Shane Storz, Air Choice One CEO.

“We have done quite well in Fort Dodge with Chicago and St. Louis, but we feel like we have enhanced that with Minneapolis,” Storz said.

Storz said the top challenge going forward will be recruiting pilots.

“The continuous challenge for anybody in the industry today is getting pilots — qualified pilots,” Storz said.

Federal regulations that went into effect Aug. 1, 2013, require pilots to have more experience before they can fly commercial airliners. Additional regulations that went into effect Jan. 4 also require pilots to have longer rest periods between flights.

Storz said another priority will be attracting new business to the airport.

“There’s a great asset there in Fort Dodge,” Storz said. “It’s a beautiful airport, it’s a good looking terminal. So it’s about getting folks to utilize the Fort Dodge Regional Airport.”

Adding to its fleet

In 2016, Air Choice One also added to its fleet.

A Cessna Caravan EX was added in July.

“It’s the next generation of Cessna Caravan,” Storz said. “It brings more horsepower and more speed. It’s a really good fit for Fort Dodge and we hope to expand off that aircraft.”

The addition was made in conjunction with Air Choice One’s territory expansion, according to Stefanie Kitcher, marketing manager for Air Choice One.

Air Choice One’s newest territory is Minneapolis, Minnesota, she said.

The airline’s current map includes: Fort Dodge, Mason City and Burlington in Iowa; Ironwood, Michigan; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Chicago, Illinois; Decatur, Illinois; St. Louis, Missouri; Jackson, Tennessee; and Jonesboro, Arkansas.

The new aircraft includes several features that are designed to improve customers’ flying experience, Kitcher said.

One of those features is a TKS anti ice/de-ice system that prevents precipitation from adhering to the aircraft, she said.

The aircraft is equipped with a larger turboprop engine, as well as an all-glass Garmin G1000 avionics suite.

The engine is designed to increase payload capability, rate of climb and cruise speeds, Kitcher said.

Commercial aviation ramp

Another project in the works for 2017 is the complete reconstruction of the commercial aviation ramp.

The commercial aviation ramp is the place where airliners park to load and unload passengers.

“Last year we did the general aviation ramp, so the next project is to reconstruct the commercial apron,” Chambers said. “This will be a full reconstruction.”

The ramp was originally constructed in 1952, according to Chambers.

She said there has been some rehabilitation projects over the years, but this will be much more extensive.

“We are going to tear it all out and start over,” Chambers said. “Anything that was added to it will be torn out.”

The project is estimated to cost $1.78 million.

The Federal Aviation Administration will provide $1,602,099.

The city will need to provide $178,000.

The proposed budget for operating the airport in the next fiscal year is $598,000.

Since 2011, the airport has produced $12 million worth of projects.

The city’s cost share has been $1.2 million.

As part of that investment, the airport runways have received major rehabilitation, the airport terminal has been expanded and renovated, taxiway B was rehabilitated and the general aviation apron was reconstructed in 2016.

City Editor Bill Shea contributed to this story.