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Leesburg Airport soars in slow economy
While commercial airlines have suffered from economic turbulence -- the result of higher gas and ticket prices, tightened airport security and flight cancellations -- many of the area's smaller regional airports are taking off.The hassle of big airport travel has made regional airports more attractive to corporate jet-setters, said the leadership of the smaller airports surrounding Washington Dulles International and Ronald Reagan Washington National airports.
“It's very competitive,” said Leesburg Executive Airport Director Tim Deike.
Like many of the area's smaller airports, Leesburg is a reliever airport to Dulles and Reagan, serving as an alternative for corporate jets, some that seat as many as 25.
“We're the second-busiest [general aviation] municipal airport in Virginia.” Manassas Regional Airport is No. 1, he said.
“Some businesses are located here specifically because of the airport,” Deike said.
Among the list of Leesburg's corporate patrons are Telos Corp., Wal-Mart, Target, Home Depot, Harris Teeter and Ritz Camera, which has nearly completed its 25,000-square-foot airplane hangar at Leesburg.
“We're a good gateway into the metro area,” said Deike, adding that pilots and passengers who arrive in Leesburg can quickly catch the Dulles Greenway or Route 7.
Neighboring regional airport Montgomery County Airpark, based in Gaithersburg, Md., also has seen an increase in corporate air traffic -- about 15 percent.
“That's due to the hassle of the airlines,” said John Luke, the airpark's manager.
The draw of smaller airports is “easy in, easy out, low cost,” he said.
General aviation flights -- mostly smaller corporate jets -- into Dulles are down 10.4 percent, said Tara Hamilton, spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. She said corporate flights overall are down because more businesses are telecommuting.
Geography plays a role in the amount of corporate business regional airports see.
Those farther out from the metropolitan area rely more heavily on recreational patronage, which they say is down because of gas prices.
“We're watching our pennies,” said Edward Wallis, airport manager of Stafford Regional Airport in Fredericksburg. Like the Leesburg and Manassas airports, Stafford is a reliever airport for Dulles.
However, Stafford is about twice the distance from Dulles as Manassas and Leesburg and – possibly as a result -- has not seen as great of an increase in corporate traffic as other airports report.
“We have scaled back equipment purchases” from $50,000 to about $35,000, Wallis said.
Winchester Regional Airport has seen a budget decrease of about 2 percent, said Serena “Renny” Manuel, the airport's executive director and manager. However, Winchester's lower gas prices and airport fees, Manuel said, have helped to attract recreational pilots looking for a financial break.
For some smaller airports, the increase in corporate traffic has helped relieve the stress caused by a decrease in flights by recreational fliers and aviation schools, which cannot afford the higher gas prices.
Sam Legard, 76, a longtime Leesburg pilot, is among those who have made the move to Winchester, leaving Leesburg Executive Airport.
“It's cheaper. Gas is probably a dollar cheaper per gallon,” said Legard, who owns an insurance company in Leesburg.
During his time flying out of Leesburg, Legard said he saw a great increase in the number of corporate fliers, but he felt the strain of being within the Air Defense Identification Zone, which regulates flights for safety and security reasons.
“It's just not easy anymore,” he said.
Regional economic analyst Stephen Fuller says the trend of corporate fliers avoiding the hassle of commercial airports has been coming on since after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. However, the effects of fewer business travelers have been felt since the beginning of the year he said.
“It's a national trend,” said Fuller, who works at George Mason University. “[Business passengers] are getting out of the more commercial airports to where the fees are lower.”
For those corporate executives and businessmen who can afford private jets, Fuller said: “It's not really the operating costs [of flying]. It's the time delay and the costs associated with that.
“Time is money.”
Contact the reporter at hhobbs@timespapers.com
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