Republican executive, Democratic governor brought together by program at Salisbury airport
A pair of first-year politicians of different parties came together to celebrate a partnership set to take place at Maryland’s second largest airport, which could boost the state economically.
“We are just finishing up a hangar that has been repurposed from Piedmont (Airlines),” said Wicomico County Executive Julie Giordano, a Republican, referring to the county's $3.3 million project during a phone interview on Sept. 1.
She said the plan for the repurposed hangar is to provide it on loan for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore to run a program to train aviation maintenance technicians, a well-paid profession that is in demand.
Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, visited the Salisbury Regional Airport on his 100th day in office back in late April, and the public officials have discussed the developments at the airport several times since, including on Moore’s way in to give a speech at Salisbury University last month.
Here’s what you need to know. Note: This is an abridged version of a full article.
How did the partnership come to be?
Salisbury-Wicomico Economic Development Executive Director David Ryan has been working on bringing the university and the parties at the airport together for such a program for several years.
Tony Rudy, the airport’s director, called Ryan’s organization “really instrumental in bringing the parties together and figuring out how we get this done.”
Chris Hartman, an associate professor and program coordinator in the aviation program at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, shared Rudy’s assessment and credited Ryan’s legwork.
What’s going on at the airport?
First, the airport, second most in the state in commercial passenger boardings behind only Baltimore Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, is awaiting federal funds to start a roughly yearlong runway extension construction project.
In a September 1 phone interview, Rudy said he anticipates the first round of federal funding for the runway project to come “within the next few weeks or so” with construction to follow and an expected completion by 2025.
Not directly tied to that work, Piedmont Airlines has allowed the university to use its hangar space for the airframe and powerplant licensing program, which is awaiting Federal Aviation Administration approval. Rudy hopes the program is ready by the spring of 2024.
What interest do Gov. Moore, County Executive Giordano have at the airport?
Moore was told about the airframe and powerplant licensing program in April and pitched for funding then, according to Rudy, and now, according to County Executive Giordano.
“We’re asking for right around $14.3 million for a brand-new hangar for the school, and then Piedmont would then reabsorb the hangar that they had originally given us,” Giordano said. It has been a regular topic of conversation between the two since, according to the Republican.
Both have an interest in boosting the economy, and with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting a 2021 median annual pay for aircraft mechanics and service technicians of $65,550, that salary may help lift up local residents who complete the program, and, once certified, those technicians may help lift up the planes too.
Read the full article here:
More: How UMES' upcoming aviation technician program at Salisbury airport will fill a major need
This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Airport program brings Republican exec., Democratic governor together
