The airport manager who helped bring commercial jet service back to Farmington and earned two statewide honors will retire next month, and the director of the Cortez Municipal Airport is set to take his place.
Mike Lewis has been airport manager since 2014 and has worked closely with Jeremy Patton, the airport director at the Cortez Municipal Airport.
The city of Cortez issued a news release Jan. 12 announcing its search for a new airport director and later confirmed that Patton will leave his position in March to take a management role at Four Corners Regional Airport in Farmington.
“He’s a really good guy,” Lewis said of Patton. “He’s a pilot. He owns an airplane.”
Patton, a New Mexico native, began managing the Cortez Municipal Airport in January 2021 and has a background in aviation, trades and work as a first responder.
There were 28 applicants for the Farmington airport manager position and five were interviewed, Lewis said, adding Patton “showed far and above all the other candidates.”
Patton is familiar with FAA and TSA certifications and also flies gliders, according to Lewis.
“It will be a great fit,” Lewis said, adding he wanted someone who would be good for the airport. “The city has been very good to me. I want to be good to the city.”
The new airport director in Cortez will oversee an $8.6 million rehabilitation project that includes runway resurfacing, upgraded lighting systems and other major infrastructure improvements that will support long-term airport operations.
Lewis oversaw a similar project in 2023 in Farmington, paving the way for the return of commercial jet service in May 2025 to the Four Corners Regional Airport.
Lewis played a vital role in securing a $1 million federal air service development grant and helped obtain $25 million in federal AIP funds to complete upgrades to airport and runway infrastructure so the facility could qualify for regional jet service, said Rob Mayes, city manager of Farmington.
Those improvements included grading land around the runways and completing a “massive fill project” on the airport’s west end, which allowed the airport to count the land as an overrun area calculated in takeoff distance for aircraft.
The taxiways were realigned to meet FAA specifications requiring 90-degree runway intersections.
The visual approach system for landing planes also was upgraded.
This helped the city negotiate with SkyWest Airlines for commercial jet service in and out of Denver International Airport.
“Flights are pretty full,” Lewis said of the two daily flights. “It varies. They’re doing well, and they haven’t canceled a flight yet.”
The upgrades, coupled with the SkyWest contract, led to Lewis being named New Mexico Airport Manager of the Year in 2025 by the New Mexico Airport Manager’s Association.
This was the second time he was honored, the first being in 2018.
Lewis said he was ready to retire and spend time with his family before the air service was secured, but he decided to stay on.
“I said, ‘I better stay and see this through,’” Lewis said. “We got into the fall, and everything is running great.”
The airport remains busy with the Roadrunner Flight School. “It’s a very successful flight school. They’re teaching lots of people to fly up here,” Lewis said.
There also are two air ambulance companies based at Four Corners Regional Airport. One is operated by San Juan Regional Medical Center. The other is Guardian, which Lewis said is one of the “largest coast-to-coast air ambulance companies.”
Atlantic Aviation has a lounge and refueling station at the airport and holds a contract with the U.S. military to provide fuel to its planes.
In addition to the military, Federal Express and UPS land at the airport every day for deliveries and pickups.
Personal commuter flights also use the airport.
The Cortez Municipal Airport provides commercial air service through Denver Air Connection, offering flights to Denver and Phoenix, according to the news release.
The Cortez airport also serves general aviation, emergency services and travelers accessing Mesa Verde National Park and the Four Corners region, according to the news release.
“The airport director is responsible for the administration, supervision and daily operations of the airport,” the news release states.
The full-time position in Cortez pays $45.94 to $69.48 an hour, plus benefits, according to the city’s job board.
The Farmington airport manager position pays $75,191 to $116,906 a year, according to Gina Intoppa, Farmington communications manager.
Anna Watson, of the Cortez Journal, contributed to this reporting.
