Staff Report
The arrivals and departures displays at Santa Barbara Airport (SBA) are beginning to look a tad more normal. The SBA airlines are adding service back in as demand for air travel slowly returns.
Nearly 400 daily passengers traveled through Santa Barbara over the Fourth of July weekend, which is the largest number of daily passengers since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The airport, as well as the airlines, are maintaining strict cleanliness protocols, physical distancing, and mandatory face coverings.
In another of many firsts since March, a new destination is now on the SBA schedule: Alaska Airlines resumed daily service to Portland, Ore., (PDX) on July 1 with a stop in Santa Rosa, Sonoma County (STS).
Santa Barbara area residents can book flights from SBA to STS on Alaska Airlines’ website for $164 each way. This service will be available in July and August. In September, Alaska anticipates restoring daily direct service to Portland.
In August, available seat capacity will increase by 10 percent to 13 percent over July, but still will be 50 percent to 60 percent less capacity than in August 2019. The current August schedule is as follows:
Alaska: One daily flight to Seattle (SEA) and Portland (PDX) via Santa Rosa (STS)
American: Two daily flights to Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) and Phoenix (PHX)
Delta: Service to Salt Lake City (SLC) suspended through Sept. 30
United: Three daily flights to San Francisco (SFO) and one daily flight to Denver (DEN). Service to LAX still suspended.
Visit www.flysba.com for up-to-date flight information.
