Trending
A new era began at the Williamsport Regional Airport as Contour Airlines flight LF3501 took to the skies shortly after 6 a.m. Monday, bound for Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina.
The inaugural flight marked the return of air service to the area since it ended by surprise on Aug. 1, and the return of jet service since 2021, with flights now departing daily for Charlotte Douglas at 6:15 a.m., and return flights arriving around 5:45 p.m. daily.
The process to bring back the service began when airport Executive Director Eric B. McKitish Sr. reached out to Contour, Vice President of Airport Operations Andrew Chevalier told the Sun-Gazette.
"We focus on serving smaller communities, connecting them to larger communities, to provide connectivity to the entire world, so when Eric reached out, we started a natural, organic conversation," he said, with initial talks centered on the Little League World Series before expanding to general service.
"We see a demand in Williamsport, so it definitely seemed like a great opportunity and fit for both of us to be able to provide jet service down to Charlotte," he said.
"And you could see through the organic conversations with the chamber and the airport authority that they wanted to have a good partnership and to see not only Contour provide service here, but also be engaged in the community," he said.
Chevalier said the community response has been "arms wide open."
"Everybody's excited to be able to see not only are we providing air service back into Williamsport, which is a beautiful city and a beautiful area, but also we're providing jet service down to Charlotte in an hour and a half flight, and from there, you can connect anywhere in the world, he said, noting several differences between prop and jet service.
"With jet service, which is a much faster service, we're able to provide extra legroom, a snack and a drink on board the aircraft. On those smaller aircrafts, you don't necessarily get that, so we're providing a much better onboard experience," Chevalier said, calling it "the Contour experience."
"Our team members are trained in guest experience, welcoming folks on board the aircraft. We want to make them feel welcome, but it makes it a good experience on board, so it's bringing back wanting to travel on an airplane versus dreading traveling on an airplane," he said.
Having both departing and returning flights on the same day also makes it possible for those interested to take day trips to either city, Chevalier pointed out.
"I'm actually an old Charlotte native, and from the airport to downtown, there's museums and obviously NASCAR is big down in Charlotte, all of that is a 15-20 minute drive right from the airport," McKitish said.
For Chevalier, the excitement of opening new hubs never fades.
"Seeing another dot on our map is really awesome to see the growth within our network, but also when we see all of these passengers flying out today, that we're able to connect them to really anywhere in the world, that's what makes it awesome," he said.
"I'm ecstatic. This is something this community and region has wanted since I came on last year, and to finally see it coming to fruition is beyond words," McKitish said, who said he sees this as a win for both the business community and residents of both areas.
"You don't have to drive 2, 3, 4 hours to catch flights, you could do that right here at your hometown airport, and the reverse for people that are coming into the area, whether they are doing business or they're coming to visit their loved ones, they can they can do that now and be minutes away," he said.
McKitish also sees Contour's arrival as a stepping stone of sorts.
"This is just the beginning. It's one destination right now, but expanding that destination, adding other ones and potentially adding other airlines is something we're always looking at," he said.
Lycoming County Commissioner Mark Mussina summed up the occasion in one word, "relief."
"We knew how tough the industry had been since COVID, and we knew how many rural airports had lost service. They kept telling us if we followed along this path, we are going to restore jet service, and we just hoped it was true," he said.
Mussina sees the return of jet service as a two-fold win.
"It certainly helps local businesses and it helps the business traveler by giving them the opportunity to live in an area like this, so they don't have to live closer to an airport. And I think it helps families stay connected. People vacation, but as you get older, so many vacations involve going to see kids and grandkids, and it makes that easier, and so probably more frequent," the commission said.
Mussina was among the passengers on the flight's maiden voyage from Montoursville.
"I've been to Charlotte once, so I'll go down and spend the day," he said.
"I'm excited to see the plane because they've talked about how big it is and how comfortable it is, because I know other people had had concerns with a nine-seater plane, and now we're on a jet," he said.
"Being able to have this air service is significant from the perspective of the business community in particular, but also just general residents," Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jason Fink said.
"We hear from people who are looking at jobs here in the market, and they really like Williamsport and Lycoming County, but the fact of the matter is not being able to have regular air service was a hindrance to us, so, being able to have this here is going to be really a holistic answer to one key thing that we've been missing in our community," he said, adding that bringing jet service back to the area has always been a priority.
"It was announced in February of 2020, right before the pandemic started, and it started in August of 2020, but then it quickly ended because of the challenges with American Airlines and some of the things that were taking place with PPE," Fink explained.
"We've been working with the with the airport in particular, the board of directors, the staff here ever since then, to be able to get that back because we had we had a taste of it, but unfortunately, it's one of those things we lost, not due to anything that this community did," he said, adding that even in its infancy, the prospect of the jet service looks promising.
"Contour are very happy with the numbers they're already seeing. They've got a strong response to air service already coming back into the market, and we knew that was going to be the case," he said.
Fink sees the impact of jet service's return as having a major impact even beyond the Lycoming County area.
"I have colleagues within the chamber world who are very excited to see this. Union County, Northumberland County, those neighboring counties, they now have the ability to drive to Williamsport instead of going to Wilkes-Barre or Harrisburg," he said.
"The other key thing is it's free parking. This is significant because that would've been another cost for them. So being able to have this here is significant, not only just to Lycoming County but to the region," he said.
Like McKitish, Fink sees this as an opportunity for expansion.
"I believe there are other airlines out there that the airport's been in contact with to get other service to other markets, so this is a good first step," he said.
"We look forward to having Contour here long term, but being able to bring in others is just as important," Fink said.
Frequent flyer Carol Fausnaught called the return of jet service a "10 out of 10."
"I fly three or four times a month for work. I do fundraising for an international nonprofit, and so I fly to see investors," she said.
Fausnaught, vice president of development at The Veritas Forum, said a major benefit of Contour's presence will be its convenience.
"I've been flying out of Harrisburg and State College a lot, and after a long day of flying, and then adding on another hour or two of driving, it gets pretty taxing, so being able to fly right and out of here, means I'll actually fly more," she said.
"I also fly to see my kids. I have a son in Charlotte, so this is a direct flight to see him," she said.