SALISBURY — Travelers could get another airline option at the Salisbury Regional Airport if the facility located five miles southeast of downtown Salisbury gets enough community support.
Airport officials plan to apply for a $800,000 Small Community Air Service Development Grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to help land the unnamed airliner.
But a non-airport contribution, or match, is needed to ensure a favorable application is presented to DOT, according to officials.
“We have a tight timeline to apply for the grant and we have a better chance of being awarded the grant if there is some local community support behind it,” Director of Finance Pam Oland said during a July 2 County Council meeting. “So, this would be our pledge.
“If we don’t get awarded the grant, the money stays in the general fund and council would have the ability to reallocate it. If we get awarded the grant, then it already gives us the ability to do the second step, which is move it into the account where we would expend it out of which is the county capital grant fund.”
Oland said the application would be more favorably viewed if they can come up with $200,000.
Director of Aviation Tony Rudy along with Greater Salisbury Committee President Mike Dunn —in support of the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce — came before the county council at the July meeting to request a pledge of $50,000.
Worchester County previously pledged $50,000 in addition to nearly $70,000 promised from local businesses and individuals.
American Airlines currently operates six flights a day, through subsidiary Piedmont Airlines, connecting thousands of passengers each year to destinations around the globe.
Rudy told the council that they have been meeting with airlines, discussing data gathered through their consultant of where people travel and what airports they are losing business to.
He said while their major losses come from Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, they also lose travelers to Philadelphia International and surrounding Washington, D.C. airports.
“We’re trying to capture back, just to give you an idea of how many passengers we lose, we lose about 85 percent of our travel to other airports,” Rudy said. “We’re trying to capture some of that back.”
Rudy said the airport has researched what their top markets are and what region would support the added business. He pointed to Orlando and the South Florida markets as possible destinations for the unnamed airline.
“We have hundreds of airports competing for the same service and the airlines are finally recovering after COVID now,” Rudy said. “They’re starting to grow again, and one airline in particular is very interested in service.
“But because this is very competitive, communities offer incentives for them to get up running because their start-up costs tend to be high because they get enough passengers on to make a profit.”
Rudy said it would be a two-year program where they would waive landing fees for up to two years and any rent for terminal space. They would also support the airliner in marketing and advertising,
He said no agreement with the airliner has been signed as of yet.
“One thing important to know is though that we will still be collecting passenger facility charges, so if this service takes off, even if they are at a break-even level, we assume we’re going be collecting around $50,000 a year for capital projects,” Rudy said.
Wicomico County Council ultimately voted 5-1 to pledge $50,000, with Councilman Joe Holloway voting no.
Some council members referenced back to 2012 when low-cost carrier Allegiant Air began service to the Orlando region but ended the route less than a year later.
Holloway said the proposal was sprung on them at the last minute. He described the recent budget process, in which they couldn’t fund many things like they wanted.
“I think that this is a great example of corporate welfare, that this airline can’t come to Salisbury and make it on their own,” Holloway said. “I’m not going to support it.”
Dunn said bringing in the unnamed airliner would allow someone to get on a plane in Salisbury and fly to a Florida destination for $69 or $79 one-way.
“I think a lot of families in the area would really look forward to that opportunity,”
Council President John Cannon called the opportunity a “prime example” of a public/private partnership, which the county doesn’t see too often.
“I think we certainly would as the representatives for Wicomico County would want to hold up our end of the bargain,” Cannon said. “Worchester County thinks it’s worthwhile for this region, I think we should do the same and move forward with it.”
Reach Managing Editor Richard Caines at rcaines@iniusa.org.
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