UPS to cancel Decatur Airport stop in February

DECATUR -- United Parcel Service Inc. is canceling a twice-daily air stop in the central Illinois city of Decatur. Atlanta-based UPS, the world's largest package delivery company, announced the decision Wednesday.

A UPS Boeing 757 has loaded and unloaded cargo at the Decatur Airport on its way from Louisville, Kentucky, to Rockford, but those stops will end in early February.

"We're always trying to work to grow the airport and make the airport a vibrant part of the community," said Bill Clevenger, executive director of the Decatur Park District, which runs the airport. "This is a blow to us out there."

UPS spokesman Mike Mangeot said the decision results from the uncertain and declining global economy.

"UPS has worked well with the Decatur Airport over the years, and the closing of the gateway is a difficult decision, driven by economics," Mangeot said.

UPS employs about 300 people in the Decatur area. Fourteen affected workers will be offered other UPS jobs, said Craig Coil, president of the Economic Development Corporation of Decatur and Macon County.

In recent years, millions of dollars have been invested at the airport to accommodate the delivery giant.

"This is something that is very difficult for all of us to swallow that have been trying to market that property and market the airport," Coil said. "It's not a good thing for the airport going forward."