The federal government will continue to subsidize fall, winter and spring flights between the Cody and Denver airports, agreeing to pay United Airlines $841,000 to fly the route twice a day from October through May.

Wednesday’s decision from the U.S. Department of Transportation effectively guarantees that Yellowstone Regional Airport (YRA) will continue to have year-round commercial service in the coming years.

Airlines are happy to fly to Cody in the summer months, when tourists drive up passenger numbers, offering service to Denver, Salt Lake and occasionally Chicago. However, they’ve generally been unwilling to fly to YRA without government help between October and May, when traffic sinks. To keep the service going, the Department of Transportation has been subsidizing those eight months of flights through its Essential Air Service program.

United has been receiving subsidies through the program since 2018 — to the tune of $850,000 a year — to provide service between Cody and Denver. However, the current contract ends March 1, which required the DOT to seek proposals for a new deal, which will run through May 31, 2022.

United estimated that it will cost nearly $5.67 million to fly to and from Cody from October to May, with the twice a day flights yielding less than $4.83 million in revenue. The airline requested an $841,000 annual subsidy to cover the shortfall, which breaks down to $882 per flight and $23.54 per passenger; the Essential Air Service program allows subsidies of up to $1,000 per passenger.

United was awarded a new contract last week after being the only carrier to offer the subsidized winter service to Cody and meeting most of the government’s required criteria (the lone exception was that it failed to explain how it will market its local service).

David Short, a deputy assistant secretary at the DOT, wrote in a Wednesday order that United’s request for a $841,000 subsidy was “reasonable,” noting it’s $9,000 a year cheaper than what the government is currently paying United.

“United has provided Cody reliable subsidized air service since it was selected to provide the community’s [Essential Air Service] in 2018. In addition, the community has expressed its satisfaction with United’s service,” Short wrote. “Furthermore, United’s service to [Denver] will continue to provide passengers numerous domestic connections and global access.”

The City of Cody, Park County Commission, Yellowstone Regional Airport, Cody-Yellowstone Air Improvement Resources (CYAIR) and the Buffalo Bill Center of the West all wrote in support of United’s proposal last fall.

County commissioners said the area has enjoyed “excellent” service from United over the past two years, while the airport board, Center of the West and Cody Mayor Matt Hall described it as “adequate.” They also noted that United’s summer service helped Yellowstone Regional Airport achieve record passenger numbers last year.

CYAIR chairman Hank Coe added that the federal government’s support of the commercial air service “allows us to do business outside of Wyoming, and especially to bring business and tourism to Wyoming.”

United’s new 27-month contract covers this March through May, October 2020-May 2021 and October 2021-May 2022. During those periods, United plans to have one 50-passenger flight leave Cody for Denver at 5:30 a.m., with a second departure at 1:10 p.m. Meanwhile, Cody-bound flights will depart Denver at 11:15 a.m. and 7 p.m.