Community Near US-Canada Border Actively Seeking Airline
Service
After
months of anticipation, the ribbon was cut Friday on the new
passenger terminal at Plattsburgh International Airport, marking
the readiness of the massive aviation complex to begin hosting
passenger services for the Plattsburgh-Montreal-Lake Placid region.
Now, the airport just needs airline service.
In the presence of more than 100 invited guests, including a
number of aerospace and aviation business leaders from neighboring
Montreal, the airport officially dedicated the 35,000 square foot
terminal, due to begin receiving its first planes sometime in
June.
The terminal and related improvements were funded with $20
million in grants provided by the US Congress and the Federal
Aviation Administration. It represents the final phase of a
five-year conversion of the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base into
a multi-purpose regional airport and aerospace park.
Community officials note PBG is already a fully operational
industrial airport, hosting a number of aviation and aerospace
tenants -- including Pratt & Whitney Canada, Bombardier, Wood
Group, Precision Jet Management, Top Aces and the northern border
air wing of the US Department of Homeland Security, among
others.
Its massive and flexible facilities include a 12,000 foot
concrete runway, a 12 million square foot concrete apron, and 1.5
million square feet of aviation industrial space. It also features
multi-modal assets including a direct interchange on Interstate
Highway 87 and direct access to the main Montreal-New York City
line of the Canadian Pacific Railway, including a siding and new
railyard. The Port of Montreal is just one hour away by rail or
road.
Plattsburgh also has no night curfews or flight restrictions,
and enjoys remarkable weather with 97% VFR conditions. It has been
designated a Foreign Trade Zone by the federal government, and also
an Empire Zone by New York State, making it virtually a state tax
free zone for many enterprises.
Plattsburgh expects to attract air carriers seeking a low-cost
opportunity to serve the 3.5 million people of metropolitan
Montreal, just one hour north, while also serving as a long awaited
airport for nearby Lake Placid and the northern New York region as
well. Because of the strong financial support it continues to
receive from Washington and Albany, the airport is both debt free
and profitable, allowing attractive costs and terms to be
offered.
The new terminal sports four gates and a jet bridge, and a
design that will allow easy expansion in the years ahead. It will
also feature free parking as an added value to the traveling
public, and all interior signs are in both English and French, to
better serve visitors destined for Montreal.