Sep
12
Charlotte commercial passengers airborne again
Filed Under Aviation, Economic Development | Leave a Comment
Direct Air may redeem terminal investment
By BOB MASSEY
Editor
Starting Nov. 22, snowbirds will have a new way to fly into Southwest Florida.
After Skybus dissolved into perdition – the airline went belly up in April, citing astronomical fuel costs – salvation has come to Charlotte County Airport (PGD).
The angel is Direct Air, a small, low-cost carrier based in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
You can’t save souls in an empty church, nor redeem the investment of a $5.5 million, 16,000-square-foot terminal in an airport devoid of commercial passengers.
But pessimists about PGD’s future may soon be converted.
May
23
Charlotte Airport struggles to gain altitude
Filed Under Aviation, Economic Development | Leave a Comment
Are skies clearing — or is it the eye of the storm?
By BOB MASSEY
Associate Editor
CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. – Attention, passengers: Charlotte County Airport has been experiencing some turbulence. Although there is evidence of clearer skies ahead, the captain suggests you fasten your seatbelts because, either way, it’s going to be a bumpy flight.
On a warm May afternoon, Bailey Terminal is more conspicuous by its hulking silence than when it bustled with activity
not two months ago. The multimillion-dollar complex doors are locked; inside, baggage conveyors are still, ticket counters unattended, passengers once eager to fly on Skybus (the airport’s first commercial carrier since the 1980s) are a haunting memory.
Bailey Terminal – the pride of Charlotte County Airport (hereafter referred to by its Federal Aeronautics Administration code, PGD) – is a spanking clean, brand new ghost town.
Like the legendary phoenix, the airport has been struggling to rise from the ashes – but it can’t seem to get off the ground. Several opportunities for economic renewal have dissolved into a string of disappointments.
The arrival of a new company, Arcadia Aerospace Industries, is offering hope – as well as much-needed infusions of morale and revenue. But will it be enough to turn PGD’s fortunes around?
Apr
11
Southwest Florida’s ‘soon come’ air connections
Filed Under Aviation, Economic Development | Leave a Comment
By BILL SCHILLER
Business Writer
“Soon come” is a familiar expression among Caribbean Islanders to mean – not “soon” – but “some time” or “sooner or later,” yet most assuredly unknown as to exactly when. It’s also an appropriate term to identify the nonstop commercial flights proposed between San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Southwest Florida.
Local optimists believe such service will be sooner rather than later – at least, that’s the position of local business and airport representatives who have spent the last year striving to bridge tourism opportunities between the two communities.
The concern is Puerto Rico Gov. Anibal Acevedo’s political future being up in the air – which forced Puerto Rico Senate President Kenneth McClintock to curtail his March 27 visit to Fort Myers.
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