PenAir Ending Flights To 5 Cities In Nebraska, Kansas

SCOTTBLUFF, NE — PenAir says it will stop servicing Kearney, North Platte and Scottsbluff in Nebraska, and Dodge City and Liberal in Kansas, beginning on Monday, leaving air travelers in those communities without commercial flight options.

The cash-strapped PenAir, based in Anchorage, Alaska, filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization plan last month. It notified the U.S. Transportation Department last week of its plans to end service to the Nebraska and Kansas cities. The information was first reported by the airline industry news site ch-aviation.com.

PenAir said it also planned to close its hubs in Denver and Portland, Oregon. PenAir officials said in a notice last week that they intended to continue the essential air service at the five communities until replacement carriers were selected and in place. But "a massive exodus" of the airline's pilots necessitated the quick action, PenAir officials said. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

The airline has been deluged with complaints for months about flight delays and cancellations, which PenAir blamed on a shortage of planes and pilots.

The Western Nebraska Regional Airport Authority board in Scottsbluff decided in July to seek new bids for essential air service before the PenAir contact ran out. But airport manager Darwin Skelton said the airport will have to do without until a new provider can be secured.

"The best case scenario is we're looking at February, if not March," Skelton told the Scottsbluff Star-Herald. "We'll know who the carrier is by then, but we still have to wait until they can get moved in."

Photo credit: redlegsfan21 via Flickr/Creative Commons