“We are here to stay,” said Dave Hall, chief operating officer at PenAir, in a news release. “We’ve made a major commitment to the Port of Portland by committing to a contract through 2025. We believe that shows our commitment to our West Coast operation, which includes the community of Klamath Falls.”

Starting Feb. 1, flights will leave Crater Lake-Klamath Regional Airport (LMT) in Klamath Falls at 7:15 a.m., 3:45 p.m. and 7:40 p.m., according to a news release.

Departures will leave from Portland International Airport (PDX) at 5:30 a.m., 2 p.m., and 5:55 p.m. Monday through Friday, with two flights each on Saturday and Sunday.

Maintenance base

Hall believes the most significant operational change still for PenAir is moving its maintenance base from Aurora, Ore., to a hangar at Portland International Airport.

“Our aircraft have had to be flown to the Aurora maintenance facility in order to perform daily maintenance checks required by the FAA, causing flight crews and mechanics to drive the distance between Aurora and Portland, which adds significant time to flight delays,” Hall said.

More changes have been made in regards to consumer affairs and flight performance analysis.

“The company has created new positions that will help better manage on-time performance and staff and a consumer affairs office that will help us improve our customer communications,” Hall said. “Most importantly, the on-time performance position will continually analyze reasons for flight delays and generate efficiencies so we can keep our airline on-time.”

The additional flight and transfer of aircraft maintenance to Portland is expected to eliminate the need for aircraft to stay overnight in Klamath Falls, and is one of several steps the Alaska-based based airline is taking to increase efficiencies and ensure on-time flights.

“Increasing the time available for our maintenance team to perform required checks on the aircraft overnight at our Portland maintenance facility will reduce the need to complete these checks between flights, which often creates delays. These delays often result in canceled flights due to FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) regulations governing the maximum time a flight crew can be on duty,” said Bill Batman, director of operations. “The company has also taken steps to add an additional Saab 340 aircraft to its fleet over the next few months, which should allow more flexibility in aircraft scheduling.”

PenAir has also relocated its aircraft parts department from Alaska to a new regional office in Portland.

“Relocating our aircraft parts to Portland constitutes a significant investment in support to the Pacific Northwest markets that will reduce the need to ship parts between Anchorage and Portland,” said Nick Aderman, director of maintenance, in a news release.

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PenAir: “We Are Here to Stay” (H&N)