From the mid-1970s through the early 1980s, Fort Collins received service by small commuter airlines including Air US and Air Link providing shuttle flights to Denver. Service was operated through an old airfield three miles east of downtown Fort Collins. There was then no service from 1982 through 1990. Service to FNL then began by
Continental Express on behalf of
Continental Airlines from 1990 through 1993 and by
United Express on behalf of
United Airlines from 1992 through 1997. Both carriers operated shuttle flights to Denver using mainly
Beechcraft 1900 aircraft. Continental Express also used larger
ATR 42 aircraft. The airport was then served by
Allegiant Air from 2003 until October 2012. In August 2012, the airline e-mailed airport officials revealing that operations would end. The airline said it was due to an "internal business decision" to airport officials for a period of several months. In late September 2012, at a Texas airline conference, Allegiant CEO Maurice Gallagher told a reporter from
Las Vegas, Nevada that the airline left because the airport had no control tower. Since then, the airline has not elaborated on that issue. Allegiant Air previously operated
McDonnell Douglas MD-80 jetliners into Loveland with nonstop service to and from Las Vegas and Phoenix/Mesa Gateway Airport. There was air service between Northern Colorado Regional Airport and
Chicago Rockford International Airport, which was announced in June 2015, operated by
Elite Airways beginning on August 27, 2015. Elite Airways primarily used the 50 passenger
Bombardier CRJ200 regional jet and the 70 passenger
Bombardier CRJ700 regional jet on the Fort Collins to Chicago/Rockford flights. On October 28, 2016, the flights with Elite Airways ended. In 2018, the Colorado Department of Transportation Division of Aeronautics was nearing completion on the Remote Tower Project at the airport. In 2021,
Avelo Airlines announced that it would begin operations at the airport, with flights to
Hollywood Burbank Airport in California launching on October 6, 2021. This service was suspended by the airline on June 24, 2022. In 2021, United Airlines, in partnership with Landline, started operating "wingless" options with 4 times per day bus service to Denver International Airport. Luggage is checked through to passengers' final destinations. Passengers are presently not screened through TSA, requiring them to go through security at the Denver International Airport. However, departures from Denver depart from the concourse level. ==Accidents at and near FNL==