Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 APPLICATION UNDER
SMALL COMMUNITY AIR SERVICE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

DOCKET DOT

- OST

- 2013

- 0120

SUMMARY INFORMATION

A. P ROVIDE THE LEGAL SPO NSOR AND ITS DUN AND BRADSTREET (D& B) DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBE RING SYSTEM (DUNS)

NUMBER , INCLUDING +4, EMPLOYEE IDENTIFICAT ION NUMBER (EIN) OR TAX ID

. Legal Sponsor Name: Clinton County, New York
DUNS Number:
060538576 EIN/Tax ID:
14

- 6002565

B. L IST THE N AME OF THE COMMUNITY OR CONSORTIUM OF COMMUN ITIES APPLYING : 1

. C LINTON C OUNTY , N EW Y ORK

C. P ROVIDE THE FULL AIRP ORT NAME AND 3

- L ETTER IATA A IRPORT C ODE FOR THE APPLICAN T ( S ) AIRPORT ( S ) (O NLY

PROVIDE CODES FOR TH E AIRPORT ( S ) THAT ARE ACTUALLY SE EKING SERVICE ).
1. Plattsburgh International Airport (PBG )Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013

D. L IST THE 2

- DIGIT CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT CODE APPLIC ABLE TO THE SPONSORI NG ORGANIZATION , AND IF A

CONSORTIUM , TO EACH PARTICIPATIN G COMMUNITY

. 1. NY

- 21

E. A PPLICANT I NFORMATION : (C HECK A LL T HAT A PPLY )
Not a Consortium Interstate Consortium Intrastate Consortium Community now receives subsidized Essential Air Service Community (or Consortium member) previously received a Small Community Air Service Development Program Grant
If previous recipient: Year of grant(s):

F. P UBLIC /P RIVATE P ARTNERSHIPS : (L IST O RGANIZATION NAMES )
PUBLIC PRIVATE
1. Clinton County 1. North Country Chamber of Commerce
2

. Plattsburgh International Airport 2. The Development Corporation
3. 3.
4. 4.
5. 5.

G. P ROJECT P ROPOSAL : ( CHECK ALL THAT APPLY ) Marketing Upgrade Aircraft New Route
Travel Bank Service Restoration Subsidy Surface Transportation Regional Service Revenue Guarantee Launch New Carrier Start

- up Cost Offset First Service Study Secure Additional Service Other (explain below)

H. E XISTING L ANDING A IDS AT L OCAL A IRPORT : Full ILS Outer/Middle Marker Published Instrument Approach
Localizer Other (specify) 

### XProposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013

I. P ROJECT C OST : D O NOT ENTER TEXT IN SHADED AREA
L INE D ESCRIPTION S UB T OTAL T OTAL A MOUNT
1 Federal amount requested $ 2 00,000
2 State cash financial contribution $0
Local cash financial contribution
3a Airport cash funds $ 0
3b Non

- airport cash funds $50,000
3 Total local cash funds ( 3a + 3b ) $5 0,000
4 TOTAL CASH FUNDING ( 1+2+3 ) $25 0,000
In

- Kind contribution
5a Airport In

- Kind contribution** Various
5b Other In

- Kind contribution** Various
5 TOTAL IN

- KIND CONTRIBUTION ( 5a + 5b ) Various
6 TOTAL PROJECT COST ( 4+5 ) $25 0,000

J. IN

- KIND CONTRIBUTIONS** For funds in lines 5a (Airport In

- Kind contribution) and 5b (Other In

- Kind contribution), please describe the source(s) of fund(s) and the value ($) of each.
L ocal media companies will offer discounts on advertising; partner airlines will offer free tickets for giveaways; the North Country Chamber of Commerce provides monthly outreach and newsletters at no charge; the North Country Chamber of Commerce also promo tes the Airport at regional trade shows at no cost.Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013

K. I S T HIS A PPLICATION S UBJECT T O R EVIEW B Y S TATE U NDER E XECUTIVE O RDER 12372 P ROCESS ?

a. This application was made available to the state under the Executive Order 12372
Process for review on (date) _____________.
b. Program is subject to E.O. 12372, but has not been selected by the state for review.

c. Program is not covered by E.O. 12372.

L. I S T HE A PPLICANT D ELINQUENT O N A NY F EDERAL D EBT ? (I F “Y ES ”, P ROVIDE E XPLANATION )
No Y es (explain)

_____________________________________________________________________________________________Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Legal Sponsor 1 Introductory Letter s of Support 2
Introduction 6
The Plattsburgh Air Service Market 7
Low Cost Service vs. Network Service 9
Overall Air Service Demand 1 3
Air Service Needs and Deficiencies in Plattsburgh 14 Regional Load Factors 14 Connectivity Challenges 15 Per Capita Capacity 17 Strategic Plan to Grow Passengers 19 Project Timeline 21 Public/ Private Partnership 22 Letters of Support 23
Conclusion 30



## LEGAL SPONSOR

Clinton County, New York
, is the legal sponsor responsible for administering the proposed air service development program. Clinton County owns and operates the Plattsburgh International Airport.

Clinton County 137 Margaret Street, Suite 208 Plattsburgh, New York 12901 Rodney L. Brow n, Deputy County Administrator (518) 565

- 4709 brownr@co.clinton.ny.us 

### Section Page NumberProposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 2

INTRODUCTORY LETTER S OF SUPPORTProposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 3Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 4Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 5Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 6

INTRODUCTION

Plattsburgh International Airport has been one of the success stories among non

- hub airports
over the last decade. It has recruited two low cost less

- than

- daily carriers to begin service, boosting passengers using the Airport by an astounding 3,130%. But while low cost carriers have had success in pulling passenger s across the Canadian border, the Airport’s Essential Air Service (EAS) has seen a passenger decline.

Contrary to the overall performance of the Plattsburgh market, which averages a 79% load factor, overall, its EAS flights on PenAir, to Boston, fill only 33% of available seats. One of the issues is fares that have increased, overall, by 33% in the last three years. Fares on Plattsburgh’s EAS flights, alone , have increased 43% over the same period. But the fare increases have not driven passengers away from less

than

- daily service at Plattsburgh.

It appears there are two main factors causing low load factors, and poor performance, on Plattsburgh’s PenAir s ervice. One,
PenAir does not have sufficient airline codeshare agreements at Boston to adequately connect Plattsburgh

- area passengers efficiently to the national air transportation system. And two, the awareness of PenAir’s service pattern, which was
est ablished only a year ago with the DOT’s new award of service to PenAir, is not sufficient

– as those living in the region do not understand that there is daily service available at Plattsburgh.

The Airport has developed a strategic plan to improve passeng er support of its EAS flights. The plan calls for increased advertising and marketing of PenAir’s service throughout the region, to ensure regional travelers are aware of the service, the availability of flights, and its competitiveness with alternate ser vice across the Canadian border in Montreal. The plan also calls for the Airport to work with PenAir to facilitate meetings with carriers serving Boston to develop codeshare and interline agreements to allow for better connectivity at the hub. This porti on of the plan will also include funding, if necessary, to ensure major airlines booking systems can adequately “talk” with PenAir’s system.

Plattsburgh International Airport has never before requested Small Community Air Service Development Grant funding . A 2013 Grant is essential in ensuring the market’s EAS flights are sustainable and supported by the community. 

## “...EAS flights on PenAir... fill only 33% of available seats... [while fares] have increased 43%...”Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 7

THE PLATTSBURGH AIR SERVICE MARKET Current and Historical Air Service

Plattsburgh is an Essential Air Service (EAS) market in the northern part of New York State, a 30 minute drive from the border with Quebec, Canada
, and an hour and 15 minute drive south of Montreal (see Map 1). While Plattsburgh qualifies for subsidized daily service to Boston on PenAir, it is also
served on a less

- than

- daily basis by Allegiant and Spirit, with low cost service to specific
leisure destinations. This service draws heavily from the Canadian side of the catchment area, and has helped boost passengers using Plattsburgh International Airport by an astounding 3
, 13 0 % since
2007.

The immediate Plattsburgh
catchment area , seen in Map 1 inside the red outline, is home to 79,219 people as of the latest U S Census estimates. But Plattsburgh International Airport draws from a much larger area. The combined Plattsburgh

- Montreal catchment area, from which most of the Airport’s passengers are generated, h as a population of 4.1 million

. It is seen inside the blue line in Map 1. The City of Montreal, itself, which is responsible for the largest share of passengers using the Airport, has a population of 1.9 million. 

### MAP 1: Plattsburgh International Airport Catchment Area Source: Sixel Consulting Group, 2011 Census EstimatesProposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 8

People living in Quebec drive into the US to access air service at, primarily, two airports: Plattsburgh International and Burlington International in Vermont. Since Plattsburgh service has increased, it has become the airport of choice for Canadians. The drive from Montreal to Plattsburgh’s airport is just an
hour and 1 5 minutes, with a divided highway on the entire route (see Map 2). The drive from Montreal to Burlington is less direct, routing along two

- lane roads in Canada . That drive takes an average of two hours

– 45 minutes longer than the drive to Plattsburgh.

Plattsburgh International Airport has been able to leverage its proximity to Montreal to recruit low cost
service. Montreal fares are among the highest in North America, which provides Allegiant and Spirit with the opportunity to bring that traffic across the border. As of August of 2013, Plattsb urgh has non

- stop service on seven routes, with an average of 524 daily departing seats (see Map 3 and Figure 1 on next page ). Allegiant offers less

- than

- daily service to Ft. Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Orlando/Sanford, Punta Gorda, and St. Petersburg

- Clearwater. Spirit offers less

- than

- daily service to Myrtle Beach , with seasonal service
to Ft. Lauderdale , beginning again in November of 2013 . Plattsburgh’s
EAS

- subsidized service is PenAir’s
twice

- daily flights to Boston. In all,
Plattsbur gh seats are up 13% over August of 2012, but its only daily network connecting service is flat, with just 58 daily departing seats connecting to the national air transportation system. 

### MAP 3 : Current Service at Plattsburgh International Airport Source: Sixel Consulting Group; OAG Schedule Data, July 2013 MAP 2 : Plattsburgh’s Proximity to Montreal Source: Sixel Consulting Group, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 9 Air service moved from the Clinton County Airport to the Plattsburgh International Airport, on the former Plattsburgh Air Base, in June of 2007. The County and its partners took the opportunity of the move to step up air service development efforts.
Those efforts resulted in changes to EA S service, increasing its reliability, and the recruitment of Allegiant and Spirit. In 2007, the Plattsburgh market retained an average of just 8.4 passengers per day each way (PDEW) (see Figure 2). By 2011, that number had grown by 3
, 34 0 %, to an average of 289.2 PDEW. In 2012, the Airport averaged 271.6 PDEW, down slightly from the 2011 peak.

As low cost less

- than

- daily service became established in Plattsburgh, fares came down. Both Allegiant and Spirit provide ultra

- low fares, with additional profit generated through ancillary fees. This model has had much success in drawing Canadian passengers to Plattsburgh. From 2005 to 2009, the average one way Plattsburgh fare dropped by 43% (see Figure 2). Since then, however, Plattsburgh fares have been cre eping higher. In 2012, the average one way fare was 33% higher than in 2009 or an average of $33 higher each way. 

### FIGURE 2 : O&D Passengers and Average One Way Fares, Plattsburgh I nternational Airport Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2004

– Calendar Year 2012 FIGURE 1 : Scheduled Service at Plattsburgh Int’l Airport, 8/12 vs. 8/13 Source: Sixel Consulting Group; OAG Schedule Data, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 10

The fare picture is much different when Allegiant and Spirit are excluded from the analysis, and only Plattsburgh’s EAS flights are considered. With its Boston flights, PenAir currently provides Plattsburgh’s only daily connection to the rest of the world. But the average fare on flights providing network connectivity was $183 each way in 2012, up $55 each way, or 43 %, from 2009 (see Figure 3 ). Plattsburgh’s network fare was 37% higher than its overall average fare in 2012.

While fares have been climbing, so have the number
of passengers using Plattsburgh’s network service. From 2007 to 2010, Plattsburgh EAS passengers rose from 5.3 PDEW to 29. 7 PDEW

– an increase of an average of 24.4 PDEW or 460% (see Figure 3). Still, since 2010, network passengers at Plattsburgh have declined to an average of just 19 PDEW, a drop of 36%. This reflects the lack of codeshare and interline connectivity on the Airport’s current EAS carrier, PenAir. PenAir only codeshares with a single airline in Boston, and interlines with just three others. Connections are difficult in Boston without baggage transfers and through ticketing. This difficulty in connectivity h as resulted in passenger suppression.

Plattsburgh’s top origin and destination passenger
markets are the markets to which it has non

- stop low cost service. Its top three markets for 2012 all have 

### FIGURE 4: Top 20 O&D Passenger Markets at PBG Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2012 FIGURE 3 : O&D Passengers and Average One Way Fares at PBG on PenAir/EAS Service Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2004

– Calendar Year 2012Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 11

non

- stop service provided by Allegiant

– Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando/Sanford, and Tampa

- St. Petersburg (see Figure 4 on previous page ). Boston is Plattsburgh’s only market with daily service, and it ranks fourth, bu t generates just 6.1 PDEW on an average of 58 daily departing seats.

As mentioned, the overall average one way fare at Plattsburgh International Airport was $134 in 2012 (see Figure 5). But that fare is brought down by less

- than

- daily low cost service. While the Ft. Lauderdale fare averaged $136 each way, and the Orlando/Sanford fare averaged $122 each way, the Washington, DC
, fare averaged $229

each way , even though Washington is less than half the distance from Plattsburgh as it
is to the Florida cities. While Plattsburgh offers competitive fares to leisure markets, its business connectivity is damaged by high fares and a lack of support for its Essent ial Air Service.

This is also reflected in Plattsburgh’s top origin and destination passenger markets
, excluding Allegiant and Spirit. When only passengers traveling on PenAir, and subsequent connections, are taken into account, Boston is the only market that 

### FIGURE 5: Average One Way Fares at Top 20 Markets at PBG Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2012

FIGURE 6: Top 20 O&D Passenger Markets on PenAir at PBG Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2012Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 12

generates more than one PDEW (see Figure 6 on previous page ). It’s likely that a number of the passengers being reported as Boston origin and destination actually made connections at Boston, but purchased two separate tickets for their journey

– one from Plattsburgh to Boston
and another from Boston to the ultimate destination. This happens often in situations where an airline, such as PenAir, lacks codeshare connectivity at the hub.

The average fare on Plattsburgh’s network connecting service was $183 one way in 2012 (see Figure 7). But this probably does not reflect the true average fare, as the Boston fare averaged $106 each way, but it stands t o reason many who traveled through Boston had to buy another connecting ticket after they purchased their Boston ticket. Fares to cities up
and down the East Coast are commonly more than $200 each way, while fares to cities west of the Mississippi are com monly above $300 each way. These higher fares suppress passengers,
and are not as attractive to Canadian

- based travelers as the fares on the less

- than

- daily carriers.

High fares and a general lack of knowledge about how to use PenAir service to connect to destinations other than Boston have suppressed loads since PenAir took over Plattsburgh’s EAS
contract in June of 2012. Since that service change, the Plattsburgh

– Boston route has averaged a load factor of just 33% (see Figure 8). Load factors have slowly been climbing, but 

### FIGURE 7: Average One Way Fares at Top Markets on PenAir Source: US DOT OD1A, Calendar Year 2012

FIGURE 8 : Passengers and Seats per Day Each Way, and Load Factor on PenAir at Platt sburgh Int’l Airport Source: US DOT T100; June 2012

– March 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 13

the best month

– March of 2013

– averaged just 40% of available seats filled, o r an average of 2 2
onboard PDEW.

PenAir’s performance does not mean the Plattsburgh region lacks demand for air service. Other carriers, leveraging Canadian passengers, have proven Plattsburgh works. In fact, the market’s overall load factor, including service on PenAir, Allegiant, and Spirit, for the 12 months ended
March 2013
, was 79% (see Figure 9). In its best months, service at Plattsburgh International Airport has generated load factors between 90% and 93%.

Besides the low fares they offer, both Allegiant and Spirit have expended significant time and money advertising their services at Platts burgh throughout the market

– including in Canada. This has resulted in growing service awareness, and growing numbers of passengers. As a small operator, PenAir does not have the available funding to similarly advertise its services in the market, which hurts its load factors. 

### FIGURE 9 : Passengers and Seats per Day Each Way, and Load Factor at Plattsburgh International Airport Source: US DOT T100; January 2010

– March 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 14

AIR SERVICE NEEDS AND DEFICIENCIES IN PLATTSBURGH

While Plattsburgh International Airport has had strong success in recruiting less

- than

- daily low cost service to the Airport, and then drawing passengers to that service, the performance of its Essential Air Service (EAS) continues to lag many other northeast markets. Service recently changed, as PenAir won the contract to serve Boston beginning in June 2012. In the year since, the Airport has seen its network ca rrier passengers drop by 32%. Some of the reasons for this passenger decline have been mentioned in this application, including the lack of true codeshare and interline connectivity and the lack of advertising throughout the market. This
section of the a pplication will further elaborate on these issues.

Plattsburgh’s network carrier service, again provided by PenAir, is operating at the second
lowest load factor of all 36 commercially

- served airports in the northeast ern states of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont (see Figure 10). In 2012, PenAir’s Plattsburgh

– Boston route filled just 33% of its available seats. The regional aver age for that period was 82%. All other EAS markets in the region performed better, with the exception of Jamestown. The best performing EAS market was one of the smallest, in terms of catchment area population

– Rockland, Maine. Plattsburgh is, in fact, one of the largest EAS catchment areas in the country when Canadian residents are taken into account. With 3.9 million people within an hour of the Airport, Plattsburgh should fill a much higher proportion of its available network carrier
seats.

There i s no question the lack of connectivity at PenAir’s Boston hub hurts Plattsburgh’s load
factors. The three cities with PenAir service to and 

### FIGURE 10 : Northeast Markets Ranked by Load Factor Sources: US DOT T100, Calendar Year 2012Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 15

through Boston have three of the four lowest average load factors of northeast markets

– Plattsburgh, Presque Isle, and Bar Harbor (see Figure 10 on previous page ). PenAir has a codeshare agreement with just one airline at Boston

– Alaska Airlines. Alaska is a Seattle

- based
company, whose network strength lies along the Pacific coast. It does not have a Boston hub.
In fact, from Plattsburgh, there are only
three codeshare cities available for sale: Portland, Oregon; San Diego; and
Seattle

- Tacoma, Washington

– the three cities Alaska serves non

- stop from Boston (see Map 4 ) . Of those three cities, only San Diego ranks in Plattsburgh’s top 20 origin and destination markets

– at
number 17.

In order to book tickets to destinations other than those that are on codeshare carriers, passengers in Plattsburgh must either contact PenAir, their travel agent, or go to a third party website to have the ticket built between multiple ca rriers. This discourages a number of people from booking

– as they worry about baggage transfers and recovery from operational problems.
The lack of more extensive codeshares also results in higher fares, as passengers have to pay the
PenAir Boston roundt rip, in addition to the roundtrip fare from Boston to their ultimate destination. On codeshares, these fares are merged. In interline situations the fares are simply added together.

As of July of 2013, PenAir does have interline agreements with Delta, United, and US Airways ( see Figure 11). This means baggage can be
transferred between the carriers and there are protections for passengers in the case of delays
and cancellations. However, it does not allow for through pricing. Together, these interline carriers 

### MAP 4 : Current Codeshare Markets from Plattsburgh Source: Sixel Consulting Group, July 2013

FIGURE 11 : PenAir’s Airline Agreements at Boston Sources: Sixel Consulting Group, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 16

offer service to 37 destinations from Boston. When Alaska’s three codeshare destinations are added, PenAir provides connections at Boston to 40 total airports with a single stop and, at minimum, baggage transfers.

Still there are another 56 destinations served non

- stop from Boston with no interline or codeshare connections available on PenAir’s current Plattsburgh service (see Figure 11 on previo us page ). Boston’s largest carrier, in terms of both non

- stop cities served and total available seats, is
JetBlue

– but PenAir has no agreement with it for connecting passengers. Plattsburgh passengers traveling to destinations where JetBlue is the sole non

- stop carrier from Boston must buy a ticket to Boston on PenAir, and then purchase a separate ticket on JetBlue’s Boston service. These passengers must go to baggage claim to collect checked bags upon arrival at Boston, and then check in again in Bosto n with JetBlue, followed by another trip through security. Not only is this type of travel time consuming, it is also expensive, as the passenger is booking two separate tickets. Moreover, should a flight on one carrier be delayed, and the passenger miss the next flight, there is no protection for that
passenger

– JetBlue, in that case, can force the passenger to buy a new ticket on the next flight.

While PenAir’s service has been classified by those in Plattsburgh as excellent, and its new Saab 340 airc raft are some of the nicest and safest flying in regional service, its lack of connectivity at Boston drives many passengers away. Still, there is potential with improved connectivity to grow PenAir’s passenger base and to ensure the service has the best chance possible to achieve sustainability.

Another major impediment to PenAir’s success, at least in its first 12 months of service in Plattsburgh, is a lack of awareness about the service throughout the market. While those near the Airport realize there has been a service change, back to a “cabin class” aircraft, many in the greater region are unaware. PenAir, as a smaller, regional carrier, does not have the necessary funding for wide

- scale advertising that covers the market

– including Canada

– but
th ese Canadian passengers will be part of the key to success in the long term. It is reasonable to believe, with a low average fare to and from Boston ($106 each way as of 2012), PenAir’s service should be able to perform in line with the service of low cos t carriers in Plattsburgh.
Wider

- scale advertising will be the key to improvement in performance. 

## “[ PenAir’s] lack of connectivity at Boston drives many passengers away.”Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 17

Even when low cost service is taken into account at Plattsburgh International Airport, the market is still underserved compared to its regional peers. In 2012, Plattsburgh had just 3.06 available airline seats per capita (see Figure 12). This was just 67 % the capacity per capita that other northeast region airports with between 100,000 and one million available seats per year averaged. That group of airports averaged 4.56 seats per capita of their immediate catchment

areas.

When low cost less

- than

- daily carriers are removed from the analysis, the number of available seats per capita on network carrier service in 2012 at Plattsburgh was just 0.26, which ranks Plattsburgh as the market with the second lowest per capacity airline capacity in the northeast. Plattsburgh’s network carrier capacity per capita is just 6% of the average per capita capacity in similarly sized airports in the northeast.

The same is true in the number of passengers generated in Plattsburgh per capita of its immediate, US

- only, catchment area. On its daily network service in 2012, Plattsburgh generated just 0.09 passengers per capita,
which ranks as the lowest number of passengers per capita in similarly sized airports in the northeast, which includes Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, and Vermont. Plattsburgh’s network service generated 3% the passengers of the average airport in the region with between
1 00,000 and one million annual available
airline seats.

When all of Plattsburgh’s service is taken into account, including passengers on both Allegiant and Spirit, the market still generated just 67% the passengers per capita of its peer
markets in the nor theast (see Figure 13). In 2012, Plattsburgh averaged 2.41 passengers per 

### FIGURE 12 : Seats per Capita in Northeast Markets Sources: US DOT T100, 2011 US Census; Calendar Year 2012

FIGURE 13 : Passengers per Capita in Northeast Markets Sources: US DOT T100, 2011 US Census; Calendar Year 2012Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 18

capita on all its scheduled airline service. The overall northeast average, in similarly sized markets, was 3.58 passengers per capita.

Plattsburgh is underserved, suffers from a lack of connectivity on its daily scheduled service, and suffers from a lack of awareness created by an operator change on its newly issued EAS
contract. The market has proven it can support the right kind of service, as evidenced by the success enjoyed b y both Allegiant and Spirit. Plattsburgh’s EAS service can enjoy the same kind of success with broader awareness, and better connectivity at the hub.Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 19

STRATEGIC PLAN TO GROW PASSENGERS

Plattsburgh International Airport is seeking federal assistance, matched by local cash funding, for a dual approach to improving the performance of its Essential Air Service (EAS). One part of t he strategic plan is to assist PenAir develop additional interline agreements and codeshare agreements with airlines serving Boston, in order to facilitate better connectivity for Plattsburgh passengers. The second part of the strategic plan
is to increas e local and regional awareness of PenAir service through a large advertising and marketing campaign.

From the total projec t cost of $250,000, at least $20 0,000 will be earmarked for advertising and marketing of Essential Air Service on PenAir. Of the

mar keting budget, $50,000 is being provided by local partners, including the North Country
Chamber of Commerce , the Development Corporation, and Clinton County, New York.

The advertising campaign will be the first of its kind in the region dedicated to growi ng passengers on Plattsburgh International Airport’s Essential Air Service. While the Airport’s less

- than

- daily low cost carriers have advertised extensively in the region, with great success, the market’s EAS flights have gone overlooked. This program i s key to getting people to realize the market has daily service to a major hub, and growing load factors above their current 33% average.

The campaign will leverage the Airport’s current slogan, “Montreal’s US Airport” (see Figure 14). It
will cover the larger region, to ensure those across the border, in Canada, see the marketing effort, 

### FIGURE 14 : Example of Advertising Content Source: Plattsburgh International Airport, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 20

and it will make direct comparisons to Boston service
offered out of Montreal

– Plattsburgh’s main competing airport. In many, if not most, cases the service between Plattsburgh and Boston on PenAir is priced lower than service on Air Canada at
Montreal. Unique to this market, the campaign will be bilingual

– with content produced in both English
and French (see Figure 15). M any of the US residents living in and around Plattsburgh speak French, so it is essential to produce the campaign in both language s.

Additionally, the Airport and its partners will look to leverage their

on

- line presence to push
additional travelers onto PenAir. The Airport has a large e

- mail database developed over the last ten years. It uses this database to
send news and information to its subscribers (see Figure 16). With the help of this Grant, the Airport will use other websites to get “click throughs” to its website, an d to get more people signed up for its web newsletters and marketing.

Beyond the marketing campaign, the Airport will commit up to $50,000 to the effort to get PenAir linked to more airlines to improve connectivity at Boston. This funding will be used to facilitate headquarters meetings between the Airport, PenAir, and targeted 

### FIGURE 15 : Example of Bilingual Advertising Content Source: Plattsburgh International Airport, July 2013

FIGURE 16 : Example of E

- Mail Advertising Content Source: Plattsburgh International Airport, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 21

airlines; to facilitate improvements to technology to allow PenAir’s reservation systems to more efficiently communicate with the systems of other carriers; and to demonstrate the value of the PenAir passenger feed to other carriers at Boston.

The anticipated timeline for the project assumes a Grant would be awarded in September of 2013 (see Figure 17 ). If the Grant agreement with the DOT is finalized in October of 2013 , the
current air service campaign will beg in both in

- and out

- of

market by January of 2014 . At the same time, during the fall of 2013 and into the spring of 2014, the Airport will work with PenAir to facilitate meetings with potential interline and
codeshare carriers

. This effort
will continue throughout the life of the Grant, as the Airport works to identify PenAir’s technology needs, and to help execute agreements with other carriers. The Airport anticipates closing the Grant by January of 2016, if not before. 

### FIGURE 17 : Project Timeline Source: Plattsburgh International Airport, July 2013Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 22

PUBLIC/PRIVATE P ARTNERSHIP

This application for federal Small Community Air Service Development Grant funding is supported by a collection of community partners which have pledged hard matching cash. These partners include the local chamber of commerce, the local economic development organization, and the County that owns and operates Plattsburgh International Airport.



### North Country Chamber of Commerce
The mission of the North Country Chamber of Commerce is to strengthen the economic climate
of the Plattsburgh region , which includes a number of individual cities and towns. The Chamber represents thousands of businesses with diverse interests

– but nearly all of its members rely upon air service to some degree. The Chamber will be the main matching partner for this application.



### The Development Corporation The Development Corporation (TDC) is committed to developing partnerships with companies that can benefit from the many strategic advantages to expanding or relocating in the Greater
Platts burgh area in Clinton County, New York

. TDC is the single resource for companies wanting to see the best that the region has to offer

- in terms of incentives, workforce and facilities both in
and outside of TDC’s three industrial parks. TDC began with a few local bus inessmen getting together and investing their own money in the economic prosperity of Greater Plattsburgh. More than 50 years later, TDC owns and manages three indust rial parks and is led by a Board of
Directors comprised of the region’s most distinguished business and community leaders.



### Clinton County Clinton County owns and operates Plattsburg h International Airport. The Airport is an independent department within the County governance structure. The County took responsibility for the current facility in 2007 when the Plattsburgh Air Base, utilizing the same runway and physical plant, was clo sed. All commercial service moved from the former Clinton County Airport to the current airport at that time. The County is the sponsor of this application.Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 23

LETTERS OF SUPPORTProposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 24Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 25Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 26Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 27Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 28Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 29Proposal of Plattsburgh International Airport • Plattsburgh, New York • July 2013 

## 30

CONCLUSION

Plattsburgh International Airport has never before requested Small Community Air Service Development Grant funding. This would be the market’s first award

– an award that is critical to the sustainability of its Essential Air Service (EAS). Plattsburgh’s EAS flights average only a 33% load factor. Fares on those flights have risen 43% in the last three years, further suppressing local
traffic.

It’s not that the Plattsburgh market has trouble support ing air service. Plattsburgh’s low cost less

than

- daily carriers fill an average of 84% of their seats, despite fares that have risen 33% in the last three years. Both Allegiant and Spirit have been able to thrive in the market, leveraging Plattsburgh’s pos ition as a border community, and pulling traffic from Canadian communities, including Montreal. There is no reason Plattsburgh’s EAS flights should not be able to leverage the same
traffic for similar success.

There are two main challenges with current E AS flights. The first is the fact that PenAir’s entrance into the market last summer has not been as well publicized as it could have been. The second has to do with PenAir’s connectivity to other carriers at its
Boston hub. The carrier codeshares with just one airline in Boston

– and that airline only flies to
three non

- stop destinations from Boston. PenAir does not have a codeshare with any carrier at Boston who operates to a significant number of non

- stop destinations, making interlin e connections di fficult for all but the most seasoned travelers.

This application seeks funding to both improve awareness of PenAir service in the region, and to improve the connectivity at the PenAir hub in Boston. Funding will be used to market and
advertise the servi ce, and to assist PenAir in gaining additional airline connectivity agreements. In the latter regard, this Grant will assist all other communities in the US with PenAir service. 

## “This would be the market’s
first award

– an award that is critical to the sustainability of
its Essential A ir Service.”