Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 12

166 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 12 been his life and his passion since he studied it at the University of North Carolina. They have a university airport there, where he worked in his spare time as a manager. He was also working part-time as a ramp person for Delta at the nearby Raleigh Durham Airport. Then it was on to Delta in Atlanta, where he worked 25 years, before a brief stint in real estate. What followed was a return to the world of flight and 10 years in his present role as Airport Manager for the Lincolnton – Lincoln County Airport. He states, “My whole life has been in this field, in some of the busiest airports there are, and I love it. I guess when I look at what the next few years have to offer, I am hoping for expansion. Getting these 10 acres levelled up and then making room for more corporate traffic will be good for us and the area, we will become more of an overflow for Charlotte. More people are discovering our region every day and so we just keep seeing more traffic. It is a great position to be in.” Being community minded and future focused, the team at Lincolnton – Lincoln County Regional is constantly doing things to help promote aviation as a career. In that regard, many charter schools and private schools bring their students on tours of the facilities. The airport also hosts popular events like the recent fly-in car show, where they had 100 antique cars entered in the show. This brings in not only pilots but also townsfolk who get to see the airport as part of their community. Tate shares, “I am always working with, and talking to, Cliff Brown at the Lincoln Economic Development Association (LEDA). I was the guest speaker at their last annual meeting, and while we all recognize that the airport is a large economic driver, we also just want to promote everything we have here in Lincolnton and Lincoln County. We are currently working on a grant together for a project in the future – but the thing is, LEDA is a real asset to the community and by working together we are capitalizing on the growth.” It’s obvious that Tate loves his job. Aviation has PREFERRED VENDOR/ PARTNER n Lincoln Economic Development Association www.lincolneda.org