b'12 RKS TERMINALSIn three months, we went from, This is a good idea to It wasTwenty-two million (dollars) isnt a lot of money for many delivered and were building it, Forgays says. People thoughtmunicipalities, but this would have been the largest project in the Sprung Structure was the new (terminal). each of their histories, even if they split the costs, Brubaker says. Its actually better than what we moved out of, addsAnd they still said yes.Brubaker. Over nearly a year, I havent received a single publicHe attributes that support as payback for lengthy efforts to complaint. build relationships and trust. Even after that move shaved a years costs from the ledger,It was a rabbit out of a hat, Brubaker quips. But wed spent the overall price of the project had increased significantlydueyears telling the story and sharing the vision of why the airport is to post-COVID inflation and having to redo some interior workso critical to our economic success. Ultimately, that resulted in damaged by exposure to the elements during the yearlongunanimous support from all parties.construction pause. With a revised total cost of nearly $44 million,Brubaker never had to call in those markers, though, because RKS was $22 million short on funds as work was set to resume. he secured additional support from the state and FAA that There were a lot of questions about whether we could pullrelieved the city and county of most of their financial commitments in the funding, Forgays recalls. Devon [Brubaker] pulled all theto the expansion.levers he could pull and was able to find it. There were definitely some times when the (financing) gap Brubaker asked the Rock Springs City Council and Sweetwaterlooked large, but Devon has a way of leveraging things, Rowley County Commission each to pledge the funds needed to resumesays admiringly. Being able to get all of those partners to see the construction. Although he hoped to subsequently find othersame visionits just crazy. Hes very good at his job.sources of money, all involved recognized the scale of the ask.AviationA Remote Interest The first flights to Sweetwater County, WY, date back more than ahad become stagnant, he recalls. Like a politician stumping for century when a seven-week, coast-to-coast-and-back air race flewvotes, Brubaker routinely promoted the airport before community onto a newly cleared landing strip on the cliffs overlooking the Greenresidents and business leaders. Airport staff became regulars at River in 1919. The popularity of that event spawned a series oflocal chamber of commerce luncheons, county fairs and anywhere local air races that fostered an ongoing fascination for flight amongelse they could sing their airports praises before residents.residents of an isolated community that even today requires a nearlyThere was a marketing budget that wasnt being spent, four-hour drive to reach Cheyenne, the states largest city. Brubaker explains, noting that RKS didnt even have a presence In the 1920s, growth of the then-nascent U.S. air mail industryon Facebook.led to the development of an air terminal four miles north of RockAt its peak, RKS enjoyed up to five combined departures per Springs. In turn, its presence helped make Sweetwater County theday by SkyWest Airlines (flying for United Airlines) and Delta Air primary stopping point for pilots flying between Cheyenne and SaltLines. Still, high fares kept many locals from flying. Lake City. Within his first month on the job, Brubaker made a seven-hour A decade later, Boeing and other companies began offeringdrive to St. George, UT, to meet with SkyWest Airlines and told the passenger service coinciding with air mail flights. As more peoplecarriers planners that his trip would have cost more than $900 had took to the skies, a new airport capable of handling that erashe come by air. The anecdote was helpful in building a business larger metal airframes was built east of Rock Springs, wherecase that demand at RKS would improve if carriers could provide Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport (RKS) remains today.greater value on United-branded Denver connections. Given the small population of the airports catchment area,We did all of those things and the numbers skyrocketed, he outside factors have heavily influenced air service at RKS forsays, noting that enplanements grew by nearly 60% from 2016 decadesand continue to do so today. A boom in energyto 2019. Then, the COVID-19 pandemic led to severe setbacks development sparked record passenger traffic in 2012, withat airports worldwide. Once travel resumed broadly in 2022, air approximately 56,000 passengers reported that year. But airservice at RKS gradually returned; and this August marked the travel dipped a year later when oil and gas production slowed26th consecutive month of year-over-year passenger growth at the throughout the state.airport. When Devon Brubaker was hired as airport director at RKS in 2015, the airport had a low profile and its marketing efforts October 2025AirportImprovement.com'