Delta will continue serving Chisholm, Hibbing

Delta Airlines will continue serving the Range Regional Airport as the result of a U.S. Department of Transportation decision.

The service to Chisholm and Hibbing will be provided with financial assistance from the Essential Air Service program. The annual subsidy for 12 weekly round trips to Minneapolis-St. Paul will be $2.5 million and the contract is for two years.

The trips will be aboard 50-passenger regional jets. The aircraft will no longer be involved with flights to Thief River Falls but instead will spend the night and originate the day from the Iron Range.

Passenger traffic through Range Regional Airport has increased 34 percent since 2009, and year-over-year traffic is up 6 percent. The Chisholm Hibbing Airport Authority has announced plans to expand the terminal to accommodate larger aircraft and more passengers.

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