United States, which had been served by certificated airlines before deregulation in 1978, maintain commercial service. It aims to sustain a minimal level of scheduled air service to these communities that otherwise would not be profitable.) While EAS subsidies can be withdrawn for several reasons, very often it is because a particular airport is deemed too close to other medium or large hubs, which customers can just as easily utilize. “My guess is that the EAS subsidy was cut because we’re too close to St. Louis Lambert International and Evansville (Indiana) Regional Airports.,” Collins offers. HOLDING ON TO ITS CERTIFICATION What makes Mount Vernon Outland Airport somewhat unique, though, for an airport with no current commercial operations, is that it has chosen to retain its Part-139 certification, incurring its increased costs, while simultaneously hoping and planning for a resurgence of commercial activity that will accrue future benefits from its current investments. “If we surrender the 139 certificate, it’s going to be more difficult to get it back because of all of the renewed oversight and inspections and things like that,” Collins explains. “So you don’t want to surrender it, and in Mt. Vernon’s case, if there’s a future technology, for example, that can put you back on the map, if you don’t have the certification, you’re left out in the cold. We want to go right back into service.” One of the emerging technologies that MVN has its eye on is EV (electric) aircraft, which, according to Collins, has the potential to operate economically and would be a good fit for Mt. Vernon. Collins further reports that, recently, Cape Air, the largest independent regional airline in the U.S., put down a large deposit on 75 nine-seat EV aircraft made by Eviation Aircraft, in a bid to step into the sustainable era of aviation. “It has a range to go to Chicago -- 225 miles -- which would be a prize for us,” Collins shares. “And there’s a lot of technology that exceeds that nine seat threshold and that 225 mile range from this airport. So, we want a seat at the table when that happens. 326 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 09
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