BUSINESS

New jet bridge to greet fliers at Santa Barbara Airport

Staff reports

Installation of a final jet bridge at the Santa Barbara Airport is completing the terminal building after a delay of several years.

With the addition, the airport will have four jet bridge boarding gates and one ground boarding gate, as originally planned when the terminal building opened in 2011. 

The $1.2 million, 150-foot jet bridge is being funded with a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration, along with a nearly 10% matching investment by the airport — money that’s coming from commercial air service operations, not local tax dollars.

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The jet bridge arrived earlier this week on two trucks from the manufacturer in Utah. A 95-foot crane was onsite to hoist it into position.  

For years, the airport has been without a Gate 3, thanks to the Great Recession, which took a toll on air travel just as the terminal was nearing completion. City officials decided at the time to delay buying one jet bridge until air travel rebounded.

The original 1930s terminal is visible to the far right in this panoramic view of the enlarged Santa Barbara Airport terminal that opened in 2011.

That’s happened, with the airport now breaking all its historical passenger records.

The airport’s jet bridges are notable because of their glass-and-steel construction, which is uncommon at commercial airports. 

“City leaders knew back then that visitors’ first impressions of Santa Barbara would form coming off flights and looking at the striking Santa Ynez Mountain views,” airport Director Henry Thompson said in a news release. “It’s a testament to the foresight of city leaders to build a facility worthy of such a beautiful city.”

A new passenger jet bridge is hoisted into place at the Santa Barbara Airport. The glass-and-steel construction is uncommon.

Airport has taken off

The new jet bridge comes amid rapid growth by the the airport that’s operated as a self-sustaining city enterprise on the site of a former World War II Marine air station.

Ranking as the 13th largest airport in California, it’s served by six airlines — Alaska, American, Contour, Delta, Frontier and United — and will have about 30 daily departures to 12 nonstop destinations: Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle. 

Just two years ago, it was a destination for only three airlines with 22 departures to seven locations, according to a 2017 news release.

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It served nearly 700,000 passengers in 2017 and nearly 786,000 in 2018, but by the middle of this month, it expects to have served its millionth passenger of 2019. 

Among the most recently announced flight additions is direct, “red-eye” service to Chicago O'Hare International Airport.

Santa Barbara Airport has been adding airlines and destinations making it a serious option for Ventura County residents. Still it’s a homey enough place to still offer a patio for outside viewing.

Starting June 4, 2020, the daily flight will depart from Santa Barbara at 11:20 p.m. and arrive in Chicago at 5:20 a.m. local time. A Santa Barbara-bound traveler will be able to depart Chicago at 7:45 p.m. and arrive at 10:30 p.m. local time.

The route will be served by an Airbus 319, with the capacity of up to 128 passengers and “will also shave hours off the typical routes via Denver, Los Angeles or San Francisco,” Thompson said.

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The airport said landing the Chicago service was the result of its close partnership with tourism marketing powerhouse Visit Santa Barbara.

“We know that easy access from new markets can bring repeat visitors to our region year-round,” said Kathy Janega-Dykes, CEO for Visit Santa Barbara.  

Among other recent additions:

  • In November, United began offering exclusive service to Denver three to four times a day as Frontier Airlines transitioned to seasonal service.
  • Delta Air Lines in August started offering three daily year-round flights from Salt Lake City to Santa Barbara aboard a 76-seat Embraer E-175 aircraft.
  • In April and May, Contour Airlines began offering daily nonstop service to Sacramento and increased its flights to Oakland and Las Vegas.