Airline service now a memory

What do you call an airport without regular commercial air service? Empty.

The picture on the front page of last Sunday’s Vindicator is a stark reminder of what lies ahead for the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport unless a carrier is brought in to serve the Mahoning and Shenango valleys.

The picture, showing the front of the terminal devoid of activity, bolstered an in-depth story by Vindicator business writer Jordyn Grzelewski about the economic storm clouds gathering over the facility.

A related story by reporter Ed Runyan focuses on the symbiotic relationship between the airport and the Youngstown Air Reserve Station.

The bottom line: Despite the absence of regular commercial air service, the airport cannot be mothballed. That’s because the U.S. Air Force Reserve expects a fully functioning airport to serve the base’s needs.

There’s an often heard statement that accurately describes the situation: “Without the airport, there would be no air base.”

And without the air base, the Mahoning Valley’s economy would take a nosedive.

The reserve station, home of the 910th Airlift Wing, employs 1,800 full- and part-time military and civilian personnel, and has an annual payroll of $50.2 million. The multiplier effect of that amount is about $100 million.

But it just isn’t the economic impact that’s of concern to government officials and business, industry and community leaders. The psychological fallout of the loss of the air base would be as devastating as when the steel industry in the Valley collapsed more than three decades ago.

The sprawling Air Force facility in Vienna Township has been a part of the region for almost 70 years.

It is, therefore, clear that the Western Reserve Port Authority, which governs the airport, cannot even toy with the idea of shutting down the airport. That means Trumbull and Mahoning county commissioners have no choice but to continue allocating $1 million-plus from the hotel bed tax to the WRPA.

While critics of the airport will undoubtedly renew their calls for the government financial faucets to be turned off, a knee-jerk reaction from the commissioners would do more harm than good.

That said, the two county governments should demand a meeting with members of the port authority and Executive Director John Moliterno to clarify the conflicting information about landing a commercial airline.

Mike Mooney, the WRPA’s aviation consultant, said last week that luring passenger service will be “an uphill effort” and that the earliest something could come to fruition would be sometime next year.

Moliterno, who had no experience managing an airport before he was hired four years ago, contended that officials are in talks with “multiple companies and carriers” and hope to have an agreement in place by year’s end.

But it isn’t just the differing opinions about attracting a commercial airline that should concern Commissioners Daniel Polivka, Frank Fuda and Mauro Cantalamessa in Trumbull County and Anthony Traficanti, Carol Rimedio-Righetti and David Ditzler in Mahoning County.

In the midst of all the uncertainty surrounding the future of the airport, the port authority approved a two-year contract extension for Anthony Trevena. Trevena is the economic development director for NEO Development and Finance Authority, a division of the WRPA.

His salary of $90,000, which comes out of the authority’s budget, is unchanged. However, members voted to pick up 7 percent of his contribution to his state pension plan.

Given that many members of the port authority come from the private sector, it is inexplicable that an employee would get a two-year contract extension in the midst of economic turbulence.

Here’s what Mooney, a partner in Volaire Aviation Consulting, had to say about the airport’s prospects of attracting an airline.

“Small communities today have a big challenge. The airline industry is making a lot of money. Wall Street now says, ‘You need to keep making money.’ … You don’t want to take risks in a strong economy, with a pilot shortage, so for small communities it’s kind of a pay-to-play situation. That’s going on around the country.”

Youngstown-Warren Regional has also fallen victim to the decision by ultra low cost carriers, such as Allegiant, which served the Valley for many years, investing heavily in larger markets. Allegiant stopped service to the Valley after it started flying into Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.

“You got run over in that situation,” Mooney said. He pointed out Youngstown was the only airport in the region with an ultra low cost carrier in 2011. By 2017, airports throughout the region were accommodating those carriers.

Therein lies the challenge for the Valley. Where will it find the next commercial airline? It’s anyone’s guess.

But what is not a guessing game is the need to keep the Youngstown Air Reserve Station intact – and growing.