Manistee Airport Backs EAS Provider Amid Controversy

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, routes provided by Essential Air Service (EAS) — a Department of Transporation (DOT) program that subsidizes flights to airports that might not otherwise receive service — have become, as the name suggests, essential. That's true not only for the communities and travelers that rely on the air service that EAS routes provide but also for airlines seeking a guaranteed source of revenue during uncertain times. Over the past spring, the EAS contract for Manistee, Michigan went…