ALPENA — This year could end up a banner year for the Alpena County Regional Airport, and officials anticipate 2020 could be even more successful, especially if a new contract can be reached with SkyWest Airlines.

Last month, officials said the airport had eclipsed the 10,000-enplanement mark that ensures the airport will receive a $1 million subsidy from the Federal Aviation Administration next year. The strong October was followed up by a strong November, and leaders hope solid numbers will continue through the end of the year and beyond.

In November, the airport counted 1,010 paying customers who flew out of Alpena, pushed the yearly number through the end of November to 11,383. An average month for enplanements in December could push the total enplanement total to more than 12,000 for the first time since 2015, when the airport finished the year with 12,592 enplanements. It wasn’t that long ago that Alpena County and the airport held their breaths to see if the 10,000-enplanement goal would be reached, but the airport has met the goal with room to spare the last several years.

Airport Manager Steve Smigelski said he is pleased with the progress. The increase in passengers stems from price adjustments SkyWest and Delta Airlines made and the addition of an early morning flight that opened up the door to a wider selection of connecting flights at Detroit Metropolitan Airport in Romulus, Smigelski said.

Smigelski said he is confident that those factors, coupled with the opening of a new passenger terminal in mid-January, will propel the airport to future increases in service. He added that, if the airport could add another major airport hub, enplanements could really move upward.

The airport in Alpena had Minneapolis as a second hub when SkyWest won the bid for service, but it was quickly removed because of cost concerns.

“If we get to 12,000, that would be huge, especially since we are a one-hub airport,” he said. “So, to rebound as quickly as we have is pretty incredible. I think the numbers would go up more if we could add another hub and an improved schedule. We would welcome an offer from SkyWest to become a two-hub airport again.”

SkyWest’s contract with the airport is slated to expire in 2020 and Smigelski said he hopes the airline will bid once more for the service and the FAA and U.S. Department of Transportation selects it again.

Smigelski said he expects the new terminal to be all-systems-go on Jan. 16, when it is slated to open and be operational. He said there will still be some minor work that will need to be done in the spring, but nothing major. He has targeted May for an official ribbon-cutting.

Cost for the nearly $12 million terminal were covered mostly by the federal government, with $2.4 million from Alpena County and $235,000 from the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 at sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ss_alpenanews.com.