Boise Airport Hopes to Boost Flight Numbers

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Officials with the Boise Airport are hoping to win a grant that they can use to lure a nonstop flight between Boise and the East Coast.

The Idaho Statesman (http://bit.ly/15RdOAb ) reports airport and business officials have raised about $100,000 so far in matching funds for the $700,000 grant. If the airport wins the grant, the money will be used to help cover startup costs for an airline to open nonstop service between Boise and a major hub city such as New York City, Atlanta or Washington, D.C.

Airport director Rebecca Hupp says the airport isn't specifying which hub it prefers in order to increase opportunities to utilize the grant.

Eighty airports applied for the U.S. Department of Transportation grant last year, and Hupp says she expects stiff competition this year.