The U. S. Department of Transportation has recently made a decision regarding the restoration of Essential Air Service (EAS) at Chautauqua County/Jamestown Airport in western New York. The county, along with Southern Airways Express, had submitted a proposal in May 2025 to add 12 or 17 weekly round trip flights to Washington Dulles, using nine-seat Cessna C-208B Grand Caravan EX single-engine turboprop aircraft.

This proposal came after an eight-year pause in EAS-subsidized service at the airport, which was formally ended by the DOT in 2018 due to a lack of demand. The airport had failed to maintain an average of 10 enplanements per service day, which is the standard requirement for EAS eligibility. However, certain communities, including those located more than 175 driving miles from the nearest large or medium hub airport, are exempt from this standard. Unfortunately, Jamestown is less than 175 miles from Buffalo Niagara International Airport, making it ineligible for this exemption.

In their final decision, the DOT stated that there is no evidence of an increase in local demand since the termination of air service eight years ago. The proposal by Chautauqua County and Southern Airways Express predicted passenger volumes not seen at Jamestown since 2013. The department also noted that the airline’s ability to grow demand once operations are up and running is doubtful.

The ruling also highlighted the fact that Southern Airways Express had previously served Jamestown with low load factors of only 20%. This raises concerns about the airline’s ability to generate the significant enplanement increase needed to meet the 10-enplanement per day requirement.

Southern Airways Express primarily operates EAS-subsidized routes and had previously connected Jamestown with Pittsburgh prior to 2018. However, the DOT has concluded that the joint proposal is unlikely to result in the significant increase in demand needed to make Jamestown eligible for EAS once again.

In conclusion, the U. S. Department of Transportation has denied the proposal by Chautauqua County and Southern Airways Express to restore EAS-subsidized service at Chautauqua County/Jamestown Airport. The decision was based on a lack of evidence for an increase in local demand and concerns about the airline’s ability to generate enough enplanements to meet the 10-enplanement per day requirement.