ESCANABA — While the U.S. Department of Transportation will have the final say, Delta County has decided to change air carriers providing essential air service at the Delta County Airport, a move the airport believes will create more consistent flight schedules to more destinations.

SkyWest, marketed as Delta Connection, has provided 12 round trip flights per week to either Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, or a combination of the two. That contract is set to expire Dec. 31 of this year, which prompted the county and the Airport Advisory Board to begin looking at which airline would be best positioned to provide essential air service flights for the county.

“The long and the short of it is we’re trying to grow enplanements and we reached a plateau with what we had, so (we’re) going a different route; trying to grow in a different manner,” said Airport Advisory Board Chair Brian Herioux.

Following the Airport Advisory Board’s recommendation, the county is pursuing an agreement with Denver Air Connection, a subsidiary of Key Lime Air. The company would provide similar service to SkyWest’s in that there would be 12 flights per week on 50-seat regional jets, but the county would have more options for flight routes and a more consistent flight schedule.

“We’re going to set the schedule and the schedule’s going to be set until we as a local community ask to change it,” said Herioux, who noted that SkyWest had not been giving the county a stable flight schedule.

If approved by the Department of Transportation, the county would be able to schedule flights not just to Detroit and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Twin Cities area, but also to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago.

Denver Air Connection also has interline agreements with all three major airlines. The agreements allow passengers to change from one flight on one airline to another flight on another airline without having to gather their bags or check-in again.

It is not entirely clear how changing essential air service providers would affect staffing at the airport, but it is expected that many of the individuals currently employed at the airport would continue to work there. It was noted, however, that Denver Air Connection intended to bring in its own full-time aircraft maintenance person to the airport — an addition that could reduce downtime and delays for passengers. The airport is currently evaluating if there is enough space available to set up an on-site airplane maintenance facility to further expand repair and maintenance services.

While the Airport Advisory Board is confident in its decision, the bid from Denver Air Connection was higher than both the bid from SkyWest and a bid from Air Wisconsin. That means that the county will have to lay out its reasoning for choosing the new airline more fully to get Department of Transportation approval than if it were to select a less-expensive carrier. A determination from the Department of Transportation on whether or not to accept the county’s plan to enter into an agreement with Denver Air Connection is expected sometime in late August or September.