Stockton Metro’s position as the fourth major airport in the Bay Area — and regional growth that is pushing up household incomes — is drawing interest from airlines interested in possibly operating connector passenger service.
San Joaquin County Supervisor Tom Patti indicated Spirit, United, and American are exploring potentially having flights in and out of Stockton.
If it happens, it would be a significant development for the Northern San Joaquin Valley with 1.6 million residents and counting.
Not only is the region consistently among the top four fastest growing areas in the state, but demographics are showing significant jumps in the household income of those moving into the area from west of the Altamont Pass.
Given Manteca’s northern most city limits at Roth Road and Airport Way is within four miles of the Stockton Metro terminal, whatever happens at the county owned airport will have a significant impact on Manteca.
Patti — who represents Manteca north of Yosemite Avenue, Lathrop, parts of northwest Stockon, and the Delta region as a supervisor — is traveling to Washington, D.C., next with other county officials to meet with the FAA regarding the airport’s future.
Patti points out that Stockon Metro, unlike Sacramento International, is considered to be an airport serving the Bay Area.
That follows what other agencies including those that deal with housing and federally backed mortgages have done in including San Joaquin County as part of the Bay Area.
Patti noted the “catch basin” for Stockton Metro’s potential passenger draw includes Livermore and nearby communities west of the Altamont.
The Bay is served by San Francisco, and Oakland airports that are significantly more congested when it comes not just to passengers accessing them but also with the number of flights.
Stockton has steadily grown its Bay Area profile in the past 20 years.
Initially, it was upwards of a dozen corporate jets being located at Stockton that were owned by big tech companies in the Silicon Valley during a time period when flight times were limited out of San Jose.
Eventually, they were able to shift back to San Jose.
Then in 2016, Amazon started its daily large cargo jet movements to Stockton. In 2020, the online retailer expanded their footprint at Stockton to handle up to eight large cargo jets a day.
Amazon operates fulfilment centers near the airport including three in Tracy, two in Stockton, and one in Manteca on Airport Way. There are also Amazon fulfillment centers in Patterson and Turlock.
Allegiant Airlines has been operating out of Stockton for a number of years. They offer flights to Las Vegas as well as their hub in Phoenix.
Before the pandemic, United operated connector flights from Stockton to Los Angeles.
Patti noted the county has recently invested $26 million in airport upgrades.
At the same time, there has been a significant uptick in development of distribution center space adjacent to the airport.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
