New Delta flight set to begin service at Magic Valley Regional Airport

TWIN FALLS, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — After losing flights to Denver, and 2 flights to Salt Lake City in 2021, the Magic Valley Regional Airport is finally seeing some positive news: the return of an afternoon flight from Twin Falls to Salt Lake City via Delta Airlines, set to begin on Nov. 1, and lasting through Dec. 31.

“We’ll work on 2023 in the coming weeks, but we’re pretty excited about a second flight,” said airport manager Bill Carberry. “It’ll be a mid-afternoon flight and will give us a lot more balance in our schedule.”

With the holiday season about to be in full swing, the flight couldn’t come at a better time. This will likely mean a lot more traffic coming into the airport.

“It’ll be a lot more attractive for folks when they start to look at their travel plans coming in and out of Twin Falls,” Carberry said. “So, we want to bring back all of those loyal flyers.”

With a minimum revenue agreement passed in March, some changes will have to be made. The agreement states that Twin Falls City and County must guarantee SkyWest airlines $400,000 each year flights are in operation. If this revenue isn’t met by ticket sales, the city must pay the difference to the airline.

“What we’re looking at is an amendment for the city, with the city and county on the current minimum revenue guarantee,” said Carberry. “We’ll be looking to incorporate this second flight into that calculation of profit and loss.”

City officials seem to have a positive attitude toward this proposal, as another flight could lead to more economic opportunity.

“We see the impact we have when we lose a flight,” said Josh Palmer with the city of Twin Falls. When you’re able to gain a flight, we’re hoping that the community will use it.”

With increased travel, Palmer hopes a tourism boost will allow Twin Falls to be an increasingly popular destination.

“That certainly opens up more opportunities for those folks who are just traveling more for tourism and just to enjoy the area,” he said.

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