NORTON SHORES, Mich. — A new chapter for the Muskegon County Airport started sky-high.
The airport switched its flight services to Denver Air Connect amidst their 3 million dollar renovation project.
“We've been waiting a long time for this,” Ken Efting, director of the Muskegon County Airport said. “We had commuter airline service with a small, nine-seat, propeller-driven aircraft, and it suffered some reliability issues here in West Michigan’s lakeshore climate.”
In addition to the building getting a modern, new look, flights will also be different.
“When you're a passenger on an airplane, the only thing that really matters is at the foundation of your trip,” he said. “Does that flight leave on time and get you where you want to be on time, right? That wasn't the case with the previous airlines.”
Before, flights to Chicago would take about an hour and 20 minutes.
Now, it will only take about half that time.
“You can be in Chicago in about 35 minutes from the time the boarding door closes.”
Efting says most changes will be convenient for travelers. With the airport’s free parking, the goal is for travelers to park, go through security and make it to the terminal in under 2 minutes.
As construction continues, flights to and from Chicago are now available for those looking to spend time in the windy city.
“It's going to look a lot different here in about a month and a half,” Efting said. “ We're getting close to the end of the project.”
The first phase of the renovation is expected to be finished by Jan. 2025.