Courtesy photo Pictured are two new snow plows that the Alpena County Regional Airport received through a federal grant program.

ALPENA — Alpena County Regional Airport Manager Mick Higgins said that enplanement numbers are up from last year and the airport is well on its way to reaching its annual 10,000 enplanement goal, which earns a $1 million subsidy from the federal government.

He said the airport also received two snow plows through a federal grant program.

In April, the airport achieved 863 enplanements, according to Higgins. The airport achieved 679 enplanements in April of 2025.

Comparatively, in March there were a total of 755 enplanements. Higgins stated that this number was lower than last year though enplanement numbers continue to climb despite recent inclement weather in the region.

In January, the total enplanement number was 951 for the airport. In total, the airport has received 2,569 enplanements for 2026 thus far, inching closer to the airport’s end of the year quota.

Higgins said that the airport is on track to meet its 10,000 enplanement quota. If the airport successfully reaches that number of enplanements for the calendar year, it will receive a $1 million subsidy from the U.S. Department of Transportation for being a member of the Essential Air Service Program.

This money can be used for operations or equipment.

In 2025, the airport had a total of 12,888 enplanements. The total number of enplanements in 2024 was 11,150.

“All our numbers are increasing even with the current weather,” Higgins said. “We are on track to reach at least 10,000 (passengers), maybe even more than that.”

Looking ahead to summer, Higgins said that the airport is prepared to see an uptick in enplanements as summer travel begins. He added that there will also be more civilians flying to Alpena for military exercises this summer.

As far as challenges go, Higgins said that the airport has not been affected by rising fuel costs. He added that fuel has not been an issue for the aviation industry in the region.

“We haven’t seen a down tick or any delays,” he said.

[strong] OTHER AIRPORT UPDATES [strong]

On April 14, the Alpena County Board of Commissioners approved a bid for McArthur Construction to construct two ten unit t-hangars in the amount of $2,277,847. The project received a total of four competitive bids.

Higgins said that the insurance for the project is in place and the airport is just waiting on a timeline for the project.

Another new addition to the airport is a pair of snowplows.

Higgins explained that it has taken a year for the plows to be designed and constructed but they are now at the airport ready for use once snow starts to fly again. These plows were paid for by a federal grant program for airport improvements.