In March 2020, U.S. lawmakers passed a $2 trillion stimulus bill called the CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security) Act to alleviate the impact of an economic downturn set in motion by the global coronavirus pandemic. The Valdosta Regional Airport has utilized funds from the CARES Act and other grants to make necessary updates to their facilities. Jim Galloway, Executive Director of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Airport Authority, shares what improvements have been made and how they will help improve passengers traveling experience. 

Originally built as an auxiliary to Moody Field, Valdosta Regional Airport has served the area since the 1940s. The U.S. Government declared it a surplus on December 8, 1946, and the airport was converted to a public airport. In 1980, the airport began providing commercial commuter service to and from Atlanta. 

With its’ conversion having taken place in the ’80s, it required some modernization, which was recently made possible through government funding. “We had some 1980’s era hangers on the general aviation side, or private side as a lot of people call it, which was an old-style blue color. So, we had them painted white among many other updates,” said Jim Galloway. 

Additionally, some of the other improvements include a new roof on the airline passenger terminal, a new air handler in the terminal that assists with functions like air conditioning and heating, a new roof on one of the buildings over on the general aviation side as well, the installation of a new maintenance building, and a second service body maintenance truck, to name a few. The airport also used these funds to reseal and reline the parking lot during the slower travel months while citizens were sheltering in place. “For years, we have also been trying to figure out how we could seal, coat, and repaint the parking lot on the airline passenger side with such a high traffic volume. When COVID hit, and people weren’t flying due to shelter in place orders, we had a contractor come in and do just that. Everything out there looks new now,” said Galloway, which he referred to as a real-life lemonade out of lemons moment.

All of these updates were made possible through various COVID-19 grants that the airport received. This funding helped speed up projects that the airport would have originally projected would take months or even years to fund through the Passenger Facility Charge Program. “The typical grants we would receive are 90 percent from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 5 percent from the State, and 5 percent from the passenger facility charge which is levied on people flying outside of Valdosta. That passenger facility charge we are collecting is $4.39 per passenger, so it would take a long time to build up to what we needed,” said Galloway. 

The passenger facility charge is very highly regulated. Airport officials are required to follow three steps before being able to utilize these funds. First, they expect projects to be completed a couple of years out. Then staff must coordinate with Delta Airlines and get approval for those projects to move forward. Lastly, airport officials send this information to the FAA, and they oversee the program. 

However, the airport has not been collecting the passenger facility charge for more than a year since receiving the COVID-19 grants. This is because the CARES Act and similar grants have allowed the FAA to fund 100 percent of these projects instead of the usual 90 percent. 

Airport officials have been receiving these funds in about one-million-dollar increments, and the CARES Act is exceptionally flexible on uses. It covers any lawful purpose. “Typically, our grants are only for capital improvements like buildings. These were for things like paying for electricity or repairs on maintenance that generally can’t be covered by a grant. So, airport staff is trying to funnel as much of this money as possible to help stimulate the local economy,” said Galloway. “In May of this year, the airport had the second-highest number of passengers to fly out of Valdosta in 15 years, and just one less passenger in June. Most of it is leisure travel; business travel is still slower. But we are excited about the people flying out of Valdosta,” said Galloway.

The airport still has many plans for upcoming projects, including redoing its main runway and the nearby taxiways.