Flying to Oakland or Las Vegas? Santa Barbara Airport is adding new direct flights

Santa Barbara Airport will have direct flights to Oakland and Las Vegas from Contour Airlines starting in October, city officials announced Monday.

There will be daily flights between Santa Barbara and Oakland starting Oct. 16, and five weekly flights between Santa Barbara and Las Vegas starting Oct. 18, according to airport officials.

The Contour flights will be on 30-seat Embraer ERJ-135 aircraft, and tickets purchased before Sept. 7 will have fares of $59 each way to Las Vegas and $79 each way to Oakland.

“Among local travelers, Las Vegas ranks high as a desirable direct-flight destination, as does Oakland, which is an excellent addition to SBA’s current service to the Bay Area,” Airport Director Hazel Johns said in a statement announcing the addition of Contour Airlines.

“We see an incredible opportunity in Santa Barbara to provide point-to-point service to these high-demand, short-haul markets,” said Matt Chaifetz, chief executive officer of Contour, in a statement. “Santa Barbara residents can now avoid a long and unpredictable drive to the Los Angeles-area gateways and fly from their convenient hometown airport.”

Santa Barbara Airport, at 500 James Fowler Road, currently offers direct flights to Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Portland, San Francisco and Seattle.

This story was originally published August 27, 2018 at 5:33 PM.