Patrick Gavin is used to traveling between Champaign and Boston.

The Boston resident plans on relocating to Champaign to live with his girlfriend and commuting to work in several major cities. Yet despite all his traveling, Gavin has only used Willard Airport in Savoy twice because of limited flight selection.

Due to poor performance, Delta Air Lines announced on June 30 that it will discontinue the scheduled Delta Connection flights from Willard to Detroit. The change will take place beginning Aug. 31.

Gavin thinks that although his amount of commuting will increase, his usage of Willard will not.

“It’s a lot easier for me to fly Delta; it’s just more convenient,” Gavin said. “I’ll probably travel through Bloomington a lot more now.”

Steve Wanzek, Willard Airport manager said the change came as a surprise.

“It was pretty surprising to us that the call came. From all appearances here, the addition of the extra flight was being well-received,” Wanzek said. “The passenger counts had started to rise, so to hear this announcement, it’s disappointing and surprising.”

In a press release issued by Delta, Joe Esposito, managing director of network planning, said there was a decrease in loads and revenues from the airport and the company wanted to focus on better markets. Delta has provided Champaign-Urbana with its services since 1986; however, over the past year only 60 percent of seats had been filled. This is around 20 percent less than other Delta routes, said the release.

Wanzek was upset by the move and said the airport was going to immediately begin looking for other airlines.

“There are less choices for our customers now, so we are ready to contact other airlines who we weren’t interested in talking to before,” Wanzek said. “Basically what happens is, we will hire a consultant to find a match for us.”

Willard continues to be served by American Airlines, which has American Eagle flights to Chicago and Dallas-Fort Worth.

Some Champaign-Urbana residents said they would be more likely to use Willard if it was more cost-efficient.

“I would rather go here anytime,” Champaign resident Sheila Calandro said. “However, I look for whatever costs best and the best connections, and I usually find those in Indianapolis or Chicago.”

Other local residents found themselves using The Central Illinois Regional Airport in Bloomington-Normal more often.

“You have to pay for parking here, but at Bloomington you can get it for free,” Mahomet resident Jackie Ohl said. “This is the first time I’ve used Willard, and I like it, but it’s hard to find the flights I need here.”

Kim Mills, a resident of Champaign for 18 years, has rarely used Willard.

“I always just look for the cheapest flights,” Mills said. “I like it here a lot though, it’s really handy and my son was able to just drop us off at the airport. It’s nice to have family be here when you arrive and not have to drive farther to get home.”

Wanzek said he hopes to improve conditions to make Willard a satisfactory environment for customers.

A $1.7 million grant issued to Willard from the U.S. Department of Transportation on July 1 should help with that goal.

“These grants come out to most airports,” Wanzek said. “But we could use it to make some improvements and hopefully rehabilitate our runways.

“We appreciate the communities’ support during this time of changes.”