Eastern Oregon Regional Airport covers 2,273 acres at an elevation of 1,497 feet. It has three asphalt runways: 7/25 is 6,301 by 150 feet ; 11/29 is 5,581 by 100 feet ; 16/34 is 4,341 by 60 feet. In 2010 the airport had 19,885 aircraft operations, average 54 per day: 77% general aviation, 17% air taxi, and 6% military. 46 aircraft were then based at the airport: 46% single-engine, 2% multi-engine, 22% helicopter, 7% glider, 9% ultralight, and 15% military.
Historical airline service
served Pendleton from the 1930s until 1981. Jet service appeared in 1968; United Boeing 727-100s, 727-200s and 737-200s flew nonstop mainly to Portland and Boise. In the late 1960s and into the 1970s, United flew direct 727s to Salt Lake City, Chicago, and Newark or Washington. In 1969 United 727-100s flew Portland - Pendleton - Boise - Salt Lake City - Chicago O'Hare Airport - Pittsburgh - Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton - New York Newark Airport and Des Moines - Denver - Salt Lake City - Boise - Pendleton - Portland in addition to flying daily Boeing 737-200 service with a round trip routing of Pendleton - Portland - Eugene - Medford - San Francisco for a total of three jet departures a day. By 1981 United was operating two daily Boeing 727-200s from Pendleton: a nonstop to Portland continuing to San Francisco and a nonstop to Salt Lake City continuing to Denver. Earlier in the 1960s United Douglas DC-6s, DC-7s and Convair 340s served Pendleton. In 1966 the airport was stop on a daily flight between Washington state and Oklahoma jointly operated by United and Continental Airlines as an interchange service with a Douglas DC-6B flying Seattle - Portland - Pendleton - Boise - Salt Lake City - Denver - Wichita - Tulsa while United was operating twice daily round trip Portland - Pendleton - Spokane DC-6s. In later years, regional air carrierHorizon Air, a subsidiary of Alaska Airlines, flew Fairchild Swearingen Metroliners followed by Fairchild F-27s and de Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8s to Portland before ending service to Pendleton. The airport was also served by Portland-based Air Oregon with Fairchild Swearingen Metroliner commuter propjets during the late 1970s and early 1980s with nonstop flights to Portland and Boise as well as to other destinations in Oregon which were served with small Piper Navajo prop aircraft before this commuter airline was acquired by Horizon Air. In 1981, Air Oregon was operating up to three nonstop flights a day to Portland with Metroliner aircraft before being acquired by Horizon Air later that same year. By 1983, Horizon Air was operating two nonstop flights a day to Portland with Metroliner aircraft and in 1985 the airline was operating up to three nonstop flights a day to Portland, two with Metroliner aircraft and the third with a Fairchild F-27 turboprop. By 1999, Horizon Air was operating only one daily flight from Pendleton with nonstop de Havilland DHC-8 Dash 8 turboprop service to Portland.
Recent and current airline service
On October 21, 2008, SeaPort Airlines was awarded a two-year grant under the federal Essential Air Service program to provide commercial service from Portland to Pendleton beginning December 1, 2008, replacing the previous subsidized service operated by Horizon Air. SeaPort service continued to operate utilizing the Cessna 208 Caravan turboprop aircraft, six days a week until September 20, 2016 when the airline ceased all service due to bankruptcy. Boutique Air was then awarded a contract for 21 round-trips a week between Pendleton and Portland using Pilatus PC-12 turboprop aircraft, with the option to operate one service a day to Seattle/Tacoma instead of Portland, from October 1, 2016. The contract is worth US$2.3 million and goes until the end of 2018. Boutique Air has the option to operate trips from Pendleton to Boise in Idaho, but these will not be subsidized under the EAS program. Boutique Air is currently operating scheduled passenger service only to Portland from the airport.
