MOUNT ALTON — The United States Department of Transportation reopened the bidding procedure for airlines to submit proposals for federal funding through the Essential Air Service, Bradford Regional Airport Manager Alicia Dankesreiter said Wednesday at the airport authority’s monthly meeting.
Southern Airways Express, the Pompano Beach, Fla.-based regional commuter airline, has provided daily non-stop flights from Bradford to Pittsburgh under this banner since 2016.
Every two years, the USDOT, which is responsible for providing EAS communities with access to the National Air Transportation System, requests and approves the airlines’ two-year proposals. Normally, the successful airline is announced in the fall.
During the initial bidding procedure, airport authority members in May voted unanimously to seek a new airline to provide commercial air service when the EAS contract expires this year. At that time, they recommended Cape Air of Hyannis Port, Mass., as the new carrier.
SAE, one of the original bidders, came back with a counter proposal that would add weekly flights to Washington’s Dulles International Airport while maintaining their regular flights to Pittsburgh. That recommendation has been submitted to the USDOT.
Authority members then reversed course, recommending SAE.
During the reopening of the bidding procedure, Boutique Airlines did not submit a proposal. Cape Air increased its bid by approximately $800,000. Meanwhile, SAE, the current carrier, made no changes on their original proposal.
On Wednesday, airport authority members agreed to “stay the course with Southern Airways Express.”
In his report to the authority, Ryan Dach, SAE’s Bradford station manager, director of security and director of Mid-Atlantic Hometown Station, said that the airline’s report in July showed 198 passengers enplaned and 174 deplaned for a daily passenger average of 6.89. Of the 107 scheduled flights, 103 operated for a 96.3 percent completion factor.
SAE’s chairman and CEO Stan Little and Mark Cestari, chief commercial officer, attended this meeting and narrated a PowerPoint update about the airline.
Referring to flight cancellations, Little said that the airline may cancel a flight if there are no passengers. “Otherwise, it’s business as usual,” he added.
Citing how the COVID-19 pandemic has slowed down and then had a resurgence in some areas, Little, said, “This area is now one of stability.”
Cestari announced that “Wheels,” the airline’s car rental company, will be launched at the Bradford Regional Airport, possibly by Labor Day. Two vehicles, a sedan and an SUV, will be acquired from Zook Motors in Kane.
Cestari spent some time speaking about opportunities for the airline to increase its marketing areas. “One is in Erie where United Airlines has eliminated its flights to Dulles; the other is in DuBois, which has no Dulles service.”
Authority member Ken Kane and Dankesreiter both noted the importance of attracting older passengers from this area. “Many older people in our market are not comfortable about driving in urban areas,” Dankesreiter said.
In his report, Brian Wolfel, of GAI Consultants, the authority’s engineering firm said, “Approximately 99 percent of the interior and exterior construction of the terminal rehabilitation project is done.”
There is still a vacancy on the authority due to the resignation of Vice-President Ron Dankesreiter of Cameron County.
