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North Central West Virginia Airport News:
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New Charter Businesses Land at Airport
July 12, 2007
By Bill Byrd
Times West Virginian
BRIDGEPORT – Two new hangars for corporate and charter flight businesses could open later this year at the North Central West Virginia Airport, officials said.
Dean Ramsey, the airport authority board’s lawyer, was given approval Wednesday to draft leases with two firms for the new hangars, sad Alan Parks, president of the Benedum Airport Authority.
AC Express Inc. and Windsock Aviation will build the hangars. They will rent the necessary space from the authority under 30-year leases, said Parks and Rusty Elliott, his fellow Marion County Commissioner.
The addition of the corporate and charter planes will help the airport and Harrison County, which stands to gain several thousand dollars in property taxes, they said.
Parks said the authority will likely sell an additional 80,000 gallons of aviation fuel annually to keep AC’s planes in the air. The authority plans to take over fuel sales at the airport before year’s end.
AC Express, which has a one-plane base at Frankman Field in Marion County, wants to house four planes at its new hanger, Parks said.
“They’re not moving their operation from Frankman,” Parks said after the authority’s meeting.
Windsock also will base one of its planes at the airport, he said.
Earlier this summer, Harrison County Commissioner Ron Watson said the authority wants to use its fuel sales franchise to lure more corporate and charter flights to the airport.
In other developments, Joan Keith, the authority’s marking director, said low fares being advertised for flyers using Morgantown’s Hart Field are also available at North Central. The rates are the same at both airports, she said.
Morgantown is advertising bargain rates on local television and radio.
“It’s through service originating here in Clarksburg, “Keith said.
She told the authority she’s leery about following Morgantown’s lead in advertising the low fares.
First, the fares change so much, she said. Second, the number of seats available at the bargain rates is also limited, Keith said.
Passenger enplanements on Colgon Air’s new commuter service to Pittsburgh International are growing on a monthly basis, Keith also reported.
“June’s boardings we up 100 from May’s total of 275,” she said.
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