Airport reports enplanement numbers, up from last year
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ALPENA -- Enplanement numbers for the Alpena County Regional Airport in June were up 167 from last year, according to Alpena County Regional Airport Manager Mick Higgins.
Enplanements are the number of revenue passengers that board a flight, which includes transfer flights or original flights.
At July's Facilities, Capital, and Strategic committee meeting, Higgins reported to the Alpena County Board of Commissioners that 5,336 enplanements had gone through the county airport in June, a little over halfway to its annual 10,000 enplanement goal.
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.
For comparison, in May, the airport received 982 enplanements while in June, the airport received 1,116.
In 2025, the airport had a total of 12,888 enplanements. The total number of enplanements in 2024 was 11,150.
Overall, fuel sales for SkyWest were down in June, totalling 20,924 in 2025 and 16,346 in 2026.
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At the July committee hearing, Higgins said that the t-hanger project is ready to go and the crews are just waiting for equipment to be delivered.
"Everything's in place and we are just waiting to get the equipment and some of the supplies onto the airfield," Higgins told commissioners. "That should be starting shortly."
In April, commissioners approved a bid for McArthur Construction to construct two ten unit t-hangars for the amount of $2,277,847. The project received a total of four competitive bids.
Due to the wait of receiving some materials, Higgins said that the groundwork for the project will "likely" start this fall and construction will continue into the spring of 2027.
"It looks like all the ground work is going to happen this year," Higgins said. "Then probably early spring, depending on when the material's going to arrive. If it's a mild winter and they can erect the buildings or if they have to wait for weather, we'll hold out until spring. But it looks like all the ground work should be laid by fall."
In total, Higgins said that the project timeline could range from six months to a year depending on weather and other construction logistics.
Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.