Columbus Airport to begin trial period with larger Delta jets

Bigger planes are about to touch down and take off in Columbus.

Starting June 12 and running through September, one of three Delta Airlines CRJ-900 flights offered at Columbus Airport to and from Atlanta on Fridays and Saturdays will be replaced by a bigger jet, the Boeing 717. The larger commercial aircraft packs 34 more seats than the CRJ-900 model and offers increased legroom and overhead bin storage.

Airport director Amber Clark told the Ledger-Enquirer a larger flight two days per week may not seem “super significant,” but this trial period could have large implications on the future of air travel in the region.

An average of 40,000 people per month in the Columbus area travel by air, but only about 5,500 of those travelers go through the Columbus Airport, Clark said.

During the Boeing 717 trial period, Clark said, the airport expects to see 3,500 additional annual enplanements, which is the number of passengers boarding outbound flights from Columbus. In an email to the Ledger-Enquirer, Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce president Jansen Tidmore wrote that these 3,500 enplanements are expected to produce approximately $1.36 million in direct airport economic impact and $1.03 million in additional visitor spending.

Clark said offering these trial flights on only Fridays and Saturdays was motivated by the military travel demand in the region, especially with military graduations at Fort Benning occurring on Thursdays and Fridays.

“Sometimes airports have seasonal markets,” she said, “but this is sustainable traffic that we have with the military.”

One-way tickets between Atlanta and Columbus cost around $300. But transferring through Columbus instead of driving to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport offers certain benefits, like reduced TSA wait times and easier parking access.

Amid pilot staffing shortages and decreased air travel demand during the pandemic, American Airlines ended its service to Columbus in 2023. American Airlines previously offered flights to other locations from Columbus besides Atlanta, such as Charlotte, North Carolina, and Dallas.

Choose Columbus executive vice president of strategy Andy Hilmes worked with the airport to create a sustainable plan for the jet service expansion. To ensure future flight service additions out of Columbus, Hilmes encourages people to “fly locally.”

“It’s not just a moniker,” Hilmes told the Ledger-Enquirer. “We always have a goal to incentivize people wanting to use local resources because the more you use them, the greater the return.”

In addition to supporting military and business travel, Columbus tourism stands to benefit. Ashley Woitena, president of VisitColumbusGA, said 3.1 million visitors traveled to Columbus in 2025.

While attending conferences to increase the number of corporate meetings and national conferences hosted in Columbus, Woitena said people ask her about the local airport infrastructure. With higher demand for direct flights to the Columbus Airport, Woitena foresees increased annual visitor spending on food and beverage, lodging, leisure and more.

“The more direct flights we can get to Columbus, it’s going to be a win for our community,” Woitena told the Ledger-Enquirer.

Success for the Columbus Airport during the trial period means filling each Boeing 717 flight with at least 85% capacity, Clark said. That way, the flights are profitable for Delta and expansion is possible.

“It is a community effort,” Clark said. “We need those seats to be filled so that we can prove to the airlines that the demand is here.”