Summit Set to Discuss Airline Service in Centre County

Business and transportation officials will discuss the current state and future of airline service in Centre County at a forum next week.

The Chamber of Business & Industry of Centre County will host the first State College Air Service Summit from 8:15 to 10:45 a.m. on Oct. 14 in the maintenance hangar at State College Regional Airport. The event is being held in partnership with Happy Valley Adventure Bureau and State College Regional Airport.

Panel discussions and presentations will provide insight into the dynamics of regional airline service how routes are developed and sustained, the process of attracting new and retaining services and the role air travel plays in Centre County’s economic growth and connectivity.

Featured speakers will include Greg Scott, president and CEO of CBICC; Mike Carroll, Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation; Tim Sieber, managing director of Volair Aviation Consulting; Fritz Smith, president and CEO of HVAB; and Ralph Stewart, executive director of the Centre County Airport Authority.

To register for the event, which is part of the CBICC’s Voice of Business Series, visit cbicc.org.

“This event is designed to give our business community insight into the current state of air service and what is being done to strengthen and expand it,” Scott said.

Regional air service is important to the area’s economic competitiveness, as it can be a tool for attracting talent, boosting tourism and providing value to residents, organizers said in a news release. Reliable and expanded flight options would increase business connections, draw visitors and researchers to Penn State and make leisure travel to Centre County easier.

“Air service provides a critical link between Centre County and the rest of the country and world,” Smith said. “It fuels our tourism economy by making the region more accessible to visitors and event planners, while supporting local businesses and residents who depend on efficient connections for work and leisure travel.”

State College Regional Airport currently offers regular direct flights to Chicago, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. through American Airlines and United Airlines.

Business, airport and local government leaders have undertaken various initiatives to draw new flights and destinations. Most recently, CBICC, HVAB and the airport launched an effort this summer to attract the rapidly expanding, low-cost Breeze Airways to offer flights to and from Orlando, Florida.

In addition to an incentive package with commitments from several municipalities and the business organizations, the initiative also included a non-binding pledge that community members could sign indicating that they would fly Breeze Airways, along with their estimated number of annual flights.

Breeze has yet to announce whether State College would be among its next additions, though officials have said if not, it may still be added in the future.

The Breeze pitch is part of a larger effort to increase options at the airport.

“Through a coordinated, strategic effort and partnership with CBICC and HVAB, we hope to grow air service and add routes to support our region’s travel needs,” Stewart said. “The Air Service Summit will give our community the opportunity to hear directly from experts about the realities of airline attraction and the strategies in motion to enhance our offerings.”