US-based low-cost carrier Sun Country Airlines (NYSE: SNCY) will be opening a new operational base at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) on January 31, 2026. This will extend the carrier’s footprint beyond Minneapolis-St. Paul. The base itself is built around growing cargo flying, especially for Amazing, by stationing cargo aircraft at the Northern Kentucky facility and basing crews locally so that they start and finish assignments there.

Sun Country has cited CVG’s role as a major Amazon hub, its rapid cargo market growth, and strong regional passenger demand at this facility as key drivers of its decision to open a new base. The airline is actively hiring pilots in the Cincinnati area, and it says that this new base will improve efficiency, reliability, and optionality for future expansion. Sun Country is also currently in the process of evaluating additional base locations.

A New Operating Base Brings A Lot To The Table

An announcement that was made earlier this week, on December 2, Sun Country’s plan at CVG is to create an operational base at the facility, which is located in Hebron, Kentucky, with an official date for the start of base operations set for January 31, 2026. CVG was selected because it is a major Amazon air hub and sorting facility, and because the airport sits inside a fast-growing cargo market while also serving a region with strong overall passenger demand.

From an operational perspective, this base becomes a primary station where Sun Country’s cargo aircraft can be positioned, and it is where locally assigned crews will begin and end flight duty. This will reduce deadhead travel and improve day-to-day reliability. Sun Country says it will keep using shared CVG facilities rather than building a standalone footprint, and it is already hiring pilots for the new Cincinnati base. In a statement made regarding the announcement, Jude Bricker, the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, had the following words to share:

“Amazon and our cargo operation is a critical segment of our differentiated business model and enables our scheduled service seasonal flexibility and growth. We are pleased to open this base, which will support our service and efficiency across our operation. Moreover, this offers new opportunities for advancement for our pilots.”

More Than Just Another Dot On Sun Country’s Map

For Sun Country, a base at CVG is more than just a network expansion but an operational lever that strengthens its hybrid model of scheduled leisure services, charters, and cargo. By stationing aircraft and crews at Amazon’s logistics hub in Cincinnati, the airline can run its cargo schedule with less repositioning, tighter crew pairing, and improved operational recovery options when weather or network disruptions occur.

This will ultimately translate into higher reliability and lower overall friction at major hubs for the airline. It will also improve the pilot’s quality of life and, as a result, help create a new recruiting pipeline in a large metropolitan area. From a strategic perspective, management continues to signal that it wants to grow beyond the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, using cargo flying to provide year-round utilization and to support seasonal flexibility when it comes to passenger services.

Growing local demand in the Cincinnati area gives Sun Country Airlines the option to grow its scheduled service offerings over time. The airline is also in the process of adding base locations as cargo and passenger growth continue into 2026.

Cargo Customers Can Expect Smoother Deliveries

For cargo customers, most notably including Amazon, the opening of a CVG base should feel like a reliability upgrade rather than a flashy high-level network announcement. Sun Country will now use Cincinnati as a primary station for its cargo fleet, with crews based locally and ending their days right where they started, back in Cincinnati.

This structure typically reduces last-minute positioning flights, cuts back on deadhead travel, and gives dispatchers more flexibility to swap aircraft or crews when irregular operations may occur. It shortens the crew-to-freight distance materially every day. In practical terms, customers can expect steadier on-time performance, quicker recovery after weather events, and a stronger ability to cover peak-volume demand surges out of this major logistics hub.

Sun Country plans to operate using shared facilities at CVG, meaning that it should be very simple for the airline to get its hub operational. The airline’s potential additional bases could further improve cargo capabilities and operational resilience over time.