SALISBURY, Md. - In order for runway extensions at the Salisbury Regional Airport to take off, Governor Hogan's signature is needed to speed up the approval process.
On Tuesday, Lower Shore officials, along with the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce, met with representatives of Governor Hogan. Bill Chambers, Executive Director of the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce, says "we're going to ask the governor to realign some things and move this along as a priority. We're going to have him pen a letter to the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) stating that this is one of the state's priorities."
Extending the runway to 7,000 ft from it's current length of 6,400 ft will allow Charlotte bound flights to carry more passengers. Tony Rudy, manager of SBY, says going to Charlotte compared to SBY's only other destination, Philadelphia, is "obviously longer. They've got to carry more fuel and we just don't have the runway for that."
If the airport wants to attract other operations, including larger freight carriers, they will need a longer runway. Which Chambers says will allow new business opportunities including interest from private aviation.
"FedEx, UPS, USPS these are all opportunities on the table. With that extension and utilities and infrastructure at the airport, it's an opportunity most communities would relish to have," says Chambers, "we have to make sure we don't blow it. We've got to take advantage of this."
Another requirement to begin the runway extension is for officials to submit wetland mitigation and other environmental plans to the FAA.
