Alaska Airlines is reshaping its Sonoma County map just as Delta Air Lines prepares to land at Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport. Airport Manager Jon Stout told the North Bay Business Journal in a September 20, 2026 report—updated September 22—that Alaska has dropped planned Salt Lake City service from Santa Rosa this fall and will end its recently launched Ontario, California, flights on October 31.
At the same time, Alaska still intends to start previously announced Boise and Phoenix flights from Santa Rosa on November 1. Those routes keep the carrier expanding into new West Coast leisure and connecting markets even as it exits Salt Lake City plans and Southern California’s Ontario spoke.
Delta remains on schedule to launch Santa Rosa–Salt Lake City on October 6, Stout said, with airport teams already preparing kiosks, systems, and staff for the debut. The timing places Delta into the Salt Lake City lane Alaska has now vacated on paper, giving SkyTeam a clean entry while Alaska concentrates on Boise and Phoenix.
The airport’s traffic backdrop is strong. August passenger counts reached 96,205, up 33.4 percent from 72,113 a year earlier and slightly above July’s previous monthly record. Through August, Santa Rosa handled 601,362 passengers, up 13.6 percent year over year, with operations also rising sharply.
Alaska has served Sonoma County since flights resumed in 2007. A May report had described a three-route autumn package—Boise, Phoenix, and Salt Lake City—from November 1 on a seasonal basis through at least mid-April. Pulling Salt Lake City out of that package trims the carrier’s planned destination count even as Boise and Phoenix proceed.
Ontario’s October 31 exit closes a Southern California experiment that competed with drive traffic to Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose as much as with other airlines. Travelers who used Santa Rosa–Ontario for Inland Empire access will need to retime via other Alaska California gateways or drive to a larger Bay Area airport.
Southwest Airlines is adjusting Denver frequencies from Santa Rosa as well, Stout said, with a varying autumn pattern before daily Denver flying is scheduled to begin March 11. That Southwest detail sits beside the Alaska story as another sign that Sonoma County’s growth is forcing carriers to fine-tune rather than simply add seats indiscriminately.
For Sonoma County businesses that counted on a one-stop Salt Lake City bank with Alaska, Delta’s October 6 launch is the practical replacement path. For Phoenix and Boise demand, Alaska’s November 1 starts remain the near-term nonstop options on the schedule Stout described.
Aircraft type on Alaska’s Santa Rosa flying is the carrier’s familiar Boeing 737 narrowbody product; the Press Democrat report focuses on route decisions rather than a specific subfleet swap. Passengers should confirm equipment at booking, but the network story is clear: Salt Lake City plans are gone, Ontario ends October 31, and Boise plus Phoenix arrive November 1.
Source reporting: North Bay Business Journal / The Press Democrat, September 20–22, 2026, citing Airport Manager Jon Stout and prior Simple Flying coverage of the schedule changes.
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