Two airlines — Kenai Aviation and Reeve Air Alaska — are bidding to offer air service between Seward and Anchorage as part of a federal program that subsidizes air travel for qualifying communities.
Until 2002, the city had regular flights to Anchorage through the Essential Air Service program. Earlier this year, Seward City Manager Kat Sorensen asked to bring Seward back into the program, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s request for proposals.
In a letter to the department, Sorensen wrote that air travel would be the best way for people in the Chugach region to get to a Native health clinic that will open in Seward soon.
Chugachmiut, a regional non-profit that serves Native tribes from the Kenai Peninsula to Copper River Delta, plans to open a Native health clinic in Seward.
Sorensen also wrote that the program “could ensure access to reliable air service, supporting local businesses, our community, and health services throughout the state.”
Under the program, an airline would have to offer six flights a week during the city’s peak season, and three flights a week for the rest of the year.
Kenai Aviation is requesting about $1 million in subsidies over two years. Reeve Air is requesting roughly $400,000 more than its Kenai-based competitor.
The department is accepting public comment on the proposals until Dec. 19.
