Denver Air takes over at airport

CLOVIS - Different carrier, different planes, different direction.

A quick transition was made Friday at Clovis Municipal Airport, with Denver Air Connection taking over Essential Air Service operations at the facility.

The U.S. Department of Transportation selected Key Lime Air in February for a two-year order to take over for Boutique Air, which had offered Clovis residents service to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport since 2014.

Denver Air Connection, a subsidiary of Key Lime Air, now offers a dozen round trips weekly between Clovis Municipal Airport (abbreviation CVN) and Denver International Airport (DIA).

The selection of Key Lime Air came as a shock to a task force and a Clovis city commission that had recommended to part ways with Boutique, but keep DFW as the connecting hub through another provider. But in the end, the Department of Transportation makes the call.

Staff with Denver Air Connection, which first started in 1997, are hopeful Friday would be the start of a great relationship.

"We're excited to begin jet service to Clovis," President and CEO Cliff Honeycutt said in a Wednesday city press release. "Our passengers appreciate our excellent reliability, on time performance and customer service. Denver International provides passengers access to destinations throughout the world. Additionally, our twice daily flight schedule combined with our large regional jet seating capacity and low fares will make travel to and from Clovis much more convenient."

The first day of operation was busy, as Boutique operated up to its April 30 contract conclusion and DAC was tasked to move into its new place in a matter of hours. The first-day flights largely took staff between Clovis and Denver, but Director of Operations Jeff Taylor said one revenue passenger took the first Denver-to-Clovis flight.

Flights will take place aboard DAC's green, white and blue 30-seat Dornier 328 jets, and a flight attendant is required for every trip.

The service will include the following daily departures, except where otherwise noted:

• Clovis to Denver, 7:45 a.m.

• Denver to Clovis, 11:50 a.m. (no Tuesday or Wednesday flight)

• Clovis to Denver, 2 p.m. (no Tuesday or Wednesday flight)

• Denver to Clovis, 6:30 p.m.

Flights to Denver are scheduled for 90 minutes and flights to Clovis are scheduled for 80 minutes.

One-way fares range between $89 with two weeks advance purchase and $149 the day of the flight. Other fares are $109 if purchased a week in advance and $119 if purchased a day in advance. Bookings are available through denverairconnection.com or any online travel site, with 866-373-8513 as a customer service line for Clovis.

For now, Taylor said, passengers making a connection out of Denver will board a shuttle bus and go through DIA's security screening and baggage check processes. Taylor hopes to have Transportation Security Administration set up at CVN by the end of the year. However, that depends on timelines for TSA, Clovis and the COVID-19 pandemic, which Taylor can neither predict nor control.

City Manager Justin Howalt said in the city release that, "we are completing the design requirements with TSA, and look forward to completing this project as soon as possible to increase connectivity between CVN and a regional hub."