Airport director Tom Frungillo provided members of the Bradford Regional Airport Authority on Wednesday with the latest developments in maintaining commercial air service by carriers who receive the federal subsidy under the Essential Air Service (EAS) program.
The Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 allows airlines the freedom to introduce, increase, reduce or eliminate service to existing markets. Under EAS, administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation, certain communities that received schedule air service prior to the passage of the deregulation act are guaranteed special levels of Essential Air Service.
The DOT may authorize federal subsidies to pay a carrier for providing Essential Air Service to otherwise unprofitable or minimally profitable routes.
In March, the DOT issued an order prohibiting Silver Airways, the current carrier which receives the EAS subsidy, from terminating its service to Bradford. In its 90-day notice to end its service at five airports — Bradford, DuBois, Franklin, Jamestown, N.Y., and Parkersburg, W.Va. — Silver cited rising costs, pilot shortage, reduced passenger traffic and flight reductions by United Airlines at Cleveland’s Hopkins International Airport.
Frungillo referred to the article in The Era on Wednesday morning in which he told about a letter he wrote to the DOT noting that passenger traffic at Bradford has decreased to under an average of 10 enplanements since Silver Airways has provided service. He listed service and “lack of sales and marketing efforts” as contributing to the low numbers.
Frungillo said two airlines that have submitted proposals for providing EAS service to Bradford and the other four airports use the nine-passenger turbojets that are increasingly popular in smaller communities.
On Friday at Pittsburgh International Airport, representatives of Mead and Hunt, a consulting service specializing in aviation engineering, are to discuss EAS with officials from the airports and airlines that have submitted EAS proposals.
Frungillo said since 2008, officials from Bradford Regional Airport teamed up with representatives from other airports throughout the region, along with Pittsburgh International Airport and the Pennsylvania Air Service Committee to switch EAS service to Pittsburgh in order to increase passenger numbers.
In the airline report, Ryan Dach, general manager for Silver Airways operating as United Express, said that during April there were 186 outbound and 199 inbound passengers. One cancellation was listed as “operational.”
Last month’s inbound and outbound passenger numbers showed an increase over April 2013, Dach said.
In other news, authority members delayed until Monday a vote on clearing land for the proposed Multi-Tenant Center North. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Aviation has already approved and issued a $950,000 grant for developing Multi-Tenant Center North 2.
Frungillo announced the airport’s triennial emergency exercise is slated for Aug. 23-24. The schedule includes an eight-hour firefighting class on Aug. 23 and a full-scale exercise on Aug. 24.
Plans call for applying for a grant for purchasing snow removal equipment.
