Re: Getting to Chama

There are two airlines d/b/a United Express operating from DIA to Durango presumably with some kind of pooling arrangement. Great Lakes Airlines seems to be more or less a real airline, and if you select carefully you can actually fly a real jet (BAC111) to Durango. Great airplane unless you worry about cost per seat mile.
Mesa Airlines (with the smaller planes) is a bit more informal. I have had two experiences with them.
On a flight to Durango they had a mechanical problem, and in the process of correcting it transferred everyone except me to another flight. No problem, they put me on one of their little Beechcraft and gave me a private ride to Durango. Nice flight, and if I remember correctly we beat the bigger guy to the runway.
Of perhaps more relevence, I delivered a friend to the Alamosa airport to catch one of Mesa's flights. It didn't show up because the pilot failed to show (hangover?). So they put my friend up for the night at Alamosa, and paid for his dinner. The next day, there was another problem, but their flight from Cortez was diverted to Alamosa to make an unscheduled stop, and my friend made it to Denver.
There are pluses and minuses in the above, but it you want an uneventful flight, you might look for the Great Lakes flights, or better yet, fly to Albuquerque and rent a car.
But my favorite story is of a friend who told me simply, see you in Chama. Since he was driving with me back to California, it got me to thinking, how do you get to Chama without a car. Then it dawned on me, there is good bus service from Albuquerque and Santa Fe to Antonito, and from there you take the train. Now THAT's the way to get to Chama.
However you do it, hope you have a good trip.