Denver community stops expansion of deportation flight operation
Denver, CO – Organizers in Denver are continuing the fight against local airline Key Lime Air, responsible for deportation flights.
Over the last week, the campaign to stop Key Lime Air from operating deportation flights has expanded. Organizers from Aurora Unidos CSO, Immigrant Partnership Teams, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition, and Casa de Paz gathered outside of the Denver City Council meeting on December 15. The city councilors were scheduled to vote on Key Lime Air’s presence at Denver International Airport. If passed, the bill would expand Key Lime Air’s contract with the airport by increasing its operating space there.
In September and October alone, Key Lime Air operated over 275 transfer and deportation flights, which likely continued to increase in scale in November and December with funding from a $563 million contract through CSI Aviation from the Department of Homeland Security. The airline continues to make profits from creating harm and abuse through deportations and family separation.
Leading up to the vote, there was a concerted effort between organizations to do an email campaign to each city council member. Social media posts across the organizations urged community members to voice their concern for the potential expansion of a company that is benefiting from tearing communities apart. Organizers received responses from some of the council members, with two stating they would vote no. On the day of the city council meeting, organizers gathered outside of City Hall to say no to deportation flights, no to Key Lime Air colluding with ICE, and no to the requested expansion.
After the protest, organizers and community members joined the public comment session during the city council meeting to ensure council members heard their demands. Denver’s city council ultimately listened to the people and voted down the motion to expand Key Lime Air’s operations at Denver International Airport 11 to 1.
During the meeting, Denver Councilmember Sarah Parady said, “We know that people have been deported to countries they have never been to and have been deported completely erroneously. I have no interest in supporting this deportation machine and if an aviation grant is what’s on the line, it's clear to me where the city should stand on that, and where my obligations are to people in this city and around the country.”
This win was a celebrated victory in the campaign against Key Lime Air. In the short term, the fight to stop Key Lime Air’s deportation operations continued with a car rally on December 20 circling Denver International Airport demanding an end to the deportation flights. The campaign’s long-term goals will be to stop the airport from renewing Key Lime Air’s contract in 2027. Organizing groups note that they are determined to fight against the deportation flights by continuing to resist, disrupt, and expose the systems tearing apart the local community.