Blair airport offering new rides

Different aircraft, car rental options hope to attract local flyers

MARTINSBURG -- Altoona-Blair County Airport leaders are hoping to entice flyers this year by introducing a new passenger aircraft and the option of renting a vehicle.

"People now have the opportunity to fly in a much nicer aircraft, with a smooter, quieter and faster ride," airport authority member Gary Orner said recently.

The rental vehicles, airport Manager Tracy Plessinger said, can be booked online at the airport terminal through Boutique Air, the San Francisco-based airline company now providing daily passenger flights to the Pittsburgh and Baltimore-Washington International airports.

Those changes, introduced Jan. 1, are being touted as improvements that should attract passengers and help the airport recover from the coronavirus pandemic.

Passenger numbers, locally and nationally, fell to minimal levels as the coronavirus pandemic developed, then started to climb toward the end of 2020. As the COVID-19 risk lessens this year as the nationwide vaccination effort progresses, passenger numbers are expected to keep increasing.

Ryan Case, northeast regional manager for Boutique Air, recently told the Altoona-Blair County Airport Authority that the first week of passenger flights "went great."

Between Jan. 3 and 9, the first full week the company served the airport, 75 passengers boarded flights at the Martinsburg airport, an average of 10.7 passengers per day.

When the airport authority decided last year to recommend Boutique Air for the Essential Air Service subsidy that guarantees passenger flight service, one of the reasons was Boutique's aircraft.

Boutique pledged to fly an eight-seat Pilatus PC-12 that authority members described as superior to Southern's eight- or nine-seat Cessna Caravan because of the Pilatus' pressurized air cabin. The option is credited for greater aircraft maneuverability and a quieter cabin, making it easier to talk with fellow passengers.

"It's a completely different experience," Case said.

As for room, interior dimensions indicate that the Pilatus provides about 4 inches more in height, 58 inches in comparison to the Caravan at 54 inches. The Pilatus' width is 60 inches compared to the Caravan at 64 inches, according to online aircraft data.

The Pilatus also features a restroom.

Plessinger named Boutique's ticketing and baggage agreements with United and American Airlines as another benefit for passengers making connecting flights with those airlines. An even bigger benefit, Plessinger said, might be Boutique's car rental service.

Because Boutique is operating the rental service, its staff will be available to assist arriving passengers in need of transportation.

"We have had people stranded out here at the airport," Plessinger said.

As of last week, Boutique had three cars at the airport available to rent, along with access to more, Case told the authority.

Boutique's ticket prices are similar to prices that Southern Airways charged for flights. Based on Boutique's website at www.boutiqueair.com, non-refundable one-way tickets to Pittsburgh and BWI are available for $33.30. A one-way economy ticket is $103.30. Non-refundable round-trip tickets can be booked at $66.60.

Boutique's current flight schedule, for weekdays and Sundays, shows departures from Martinsburg to Pittsburgh at 6 a.m. and 5 p.m., and departures to BWI at 8:35 a.m. and 7:30 p.m.

On Saturdays, Boutique offers one fight to Pittsburgh at 6 a.m. and a flight to BWI at 7:30 p.m.

Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 814-946-7456.