The first commercial flight in over four months touched down Monday just before noon at Manhattan Regional Airport.
Two Manhattan Fire Department trucks greeted Envoy Air flight 3439 from Dallas, with a water cannon salute as it entered the jet bridge. The airport has been closed to commercial flights since early May as a multimillion dollar expansion of the runway took place. Airport Director Brandon Keazer says it’s good to have the project in the rearview mirror.
The first flight from Chicago arrived about an hour later Monday. Keazer says the airport can now turn its focus over to upgrading its hangars, a project slated to begin early next year.
The $31 million project was aided in large part by federal grants from the Federal Aviation Administration and Defense Community Infrastructure Program, which reduced the cost burden to the City of Manhattan down to approximately $3 million.
