Southern Illinois airport votes for change to Chicago flights

The Veterans Airport of Southern Illinois board officially voted Thursday to request Contour Airlines to begin flights to and from Chicago.

In January, Contour proposed a three-year contract offering 12 flights a week to O'Hare Airport on 30-passenger jets.

Contour also offers regional flights in 26 cities, including the recent addition of Paducah.

Currently, Cape Air is the only air provider operating out of Veterans Airport, with flights to St. Louis and Nashville.

The board vote will be presented to the United States Department of Transportation for approval. It could be several months before the DOT announces a decision.