Occidental Petroleum shuttles workers from Odessa to Carlsbad for Permian Basin operations

Occidental Petroleum flew from Odessa's Schlemeyer Field to Cavern City Air Terminal in Carlsbad, New Mexico, on June 4, 2026, a 27-minute hop covering roughly 140 miles. The Embraer ERJ-175, tail number N170XY, is part of the company's three-aircraft fleet and serves primarily as an employee shuttle for its Permian Basin operations.

The short flight lands in Carlsbad the same week Occidental Petroleum continues its intensive drilling and production activity in the nearby Delaware Basin, where the company holds substantial acreage. The shuttle allows field engineers, geologists, and management to move quickly between the company's Odessa-area support hub and its Carlsbad-area well sites and facilities — a routine logistical necessity for a major independent operator.

The flight fits a pattern visible in recent days: multiple short hops between Houston-area headquarters, Odessa, and Carlsbad, with the ERJ-175 often making two or three legs per day. For Occidental Petroleum, these quick trips are the invisible backbone of its Permian Basin workforce — a quiet, daily rhythm far from the boardroom drama of Berkshire Hathaway's 28% stake.