By Tim Durkin –
Posted on by Jules Slater
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (WTAJ) — A new partnership is promising to work towards bringing “more commercial air service” to the State College Regional Airport.
The State College Air Service Alliance is a partnership among the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau (HVAB), Centre County Chamber of Business & Industry (CBICC), the airport authority, and “numerous Centre County community partners,” according to its new website. The announcement of the formation came from the inaugural State College Air Service Summit.
“That [summit] was really an opportunity for us to have a conversation with the community around the importance of air service and its impact on our economy and our ability to grow the economy,” Greg Scott, president and CEO of the CBICC, said.
Scott says the alliance learned of the challenges facing the air service industry: rising costs, fewer pilots and consolidated airlines. He says the State College Regional Airport is doing a good job of keeping costs low and has some “infrastructure improvements” on the horizon that he hopes will make it more appealing for airlines.
Ultimately, the goal of the alliance is to attract more airlines to the airport. One way they plan to do that is to better market what the airport has to offer. But, to do that, they need funding.
“The federal government wants to see partnerships like this in the community. So this puts us in a better position to secure one of those grants down the road, which will help us, again, be in a position to provide funding and incentives to those airlines to come here,” Scoot said.
The alliance also wants community support and feedback. To donate or get involved, visit the alliance’s new website: www.flystatecollege.com.