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• TO SEATTLE! Alaska Airlines Will Launch Direct Flights Between Humboldt and the Emerald City Beginning in April

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A highly sought-after direct flight from Seattle, Wash., to Humboldt County’s airport had its inaugural arrival Wednesday.

The trip represented both Alaska Airline’s return to the California Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport (ACV), and the realization of a longtime goal to have commercial northbound flights out of ACV. County officials say the flight was highly requested.

“We had no idea when we booked it that this was the first flight in from Alaska [Airlines]. So it was a very fortuitous event,” said Roger Peters, a Cutten resident. He said the direct flight that brought his sister (who hails from Victoria, BC) to Humboldt County made the trip much easier.

“Glad to have the service back,” he added.

Similarly, Sam Marsh and Cassidy Hopkins weren’t aware they rode on the airline’s inaugural flight from Seattle. They booked the trip on a whim, for their first visit to the area.

“It was a great flight, a beautiful view,” noted Hopkins, who said they planned to check out the redwoods.

The route is something officials are hopeful will usher in a new dawn for the airport and boost the local economy.

“Expanded air service really means so much for our community here. It supports a lot of locals,” said Humboldt County Supervisor Natalie Arroyo during remarks, pointing to a recent Humboldt County study finding air service supported approximately 584 jobs and generated $77 million in local economic output.

The last time Alaska Airlines flew into ACV was in 2012, when the airline cut an LAX route. The effort to get this flight took some courting.

In 2022, Congressman Jared Huffman, the Redwood Region Economic Development Commission and Volaire Aviation helped the County’s Department of Aviation bag a $850,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help airport officials attract northbound flights, either to Portland or Seattle.

“The county has been recruiting this service for more than a decade, and in that time, we’ve met with Alaska’s representatives 17 times to solidify this deal,” County Administrative Officer Elishia Hayes told attendees, near balloons and a Bigfoot mascot.

Arroyo handed gifts, such as Bigfoot socks and a dawn redwood sapling, to an Alaska Airlines representative.

“We are really excited to be back in Arcata,” said Danny Flores, Alaska Airlines California Director of Station Operations, during a speech.

He said people flying out of ACV can soon use the airline to get across the world. With the integration of Hawaiian Airlines, later this month travelers can buy a ticket from Arcata and eventually get all the way to Rome. And he noted Alaska Airlines is hoping to see some additional flying in Arcata.

“We all hope that the launch of this new flight to Seattle is just the beginning of what’s to come at ACV,” CAO Hayes said.

She said the airport has seen 80% growth since 2019, making it one of the fastest growing small airports in the country.

“I’m personally thrilled that they’re here,” said Nancy Olson, CEO/President of Eureka’s Chamber of Commerce, who lived in Seattle for many years. 

“But also I think it’s going to be really good for our tourism, and bring folks down with much easier access to what we have to offer here,” she said. 

Gregg Foster, the Executive Director of RREDC, agreed. He said it’s long been a goal of economic development groups to have flights going north from ACV, for both tourism and business operations.