Why Wyoming wants in on the airline business

The next time you try to book a plane ticket to Sheridan, Wyo. — the gateway to Bighorn National Forest — you might be booking your flight with an airline that works for the state of Wyoming.

A new proposal from a Republican state senator could put Wyoming in the airline business, at least tangentially. The plan, currently being considered by an advisory board, would establish a partnership between the state Department of Transportation and an airline — likely a small regional carrier — to fly into several small towns across the state.

“We’re saying to a contractor, whether it be one of your airlines, how much do you want per hour for that aircraft? And we want you to handle the ground crews, and we want to use your website,” state Sen. Michael Von Flatern (R) said in an interview.

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