Aiming to Soar: New Developments Are on Horizon for Valdosta Regional Airport

VALDOSTA — Family road trips are a blast.

Family road trips to the airport, however, are not.

The best way to prevent added hours of travel to a vacation is using the local airport. That is where the Valdosta Regional Airport steps in.

Jim Galloway, executive director of the airport, is committed to providing the best travel experience to local residents at competitive prices.

The biggest advantage for the airport with flyers is convenience, Galloway said. The closest major airports – Jacksonville, Fla., Tallahassee, Fla., Orlando, Fla., Atlanta – sit hours away from local residents, and being in close proximity is a plus.

With convenience on their side, cost poses the next challenge. Competitive pricing is a constant focus for the Valdosta-Lowndes County Airport Authority, Galloway said.

The authority, an independent body comprised of six unpaid volunteers, governs the airport. Members review and compare pricing at monthly meetings and release those price comparisons for the public.

This past month, members compared 13 top destinations from Valdosta to prices from Tallahassee and Jacksonville. Of the 13 destinations, two flights were cheaper than Jacksonville, seven flights were within $75 of Jacksonville and six flights were cheaper than Tallahassee, according to numbers provided by the authority.

In order to stay competitive, the airport tries to improve on little things that travelers do not usually factor into travel costs such as free parking.

The airport also developed a Travel Cost Calculator. Travelers can compare Valdosta side-by-side to five other airports and tabulate the full cost of travel. The tool factors in ticket price, driving distance, fuel cost, parking cost and drive time to achieve what the airport calls the “true cost of flying.” The calculator can be found online at http://flyvaldosta.com/resources/.

Galloway, a retired Air Force pilot, said he believes additional flights will also increase local travel interest.

Delta recently announced a fourth daily flight out of Valdosta leaving at 6:30 p.m. The added flight will begin June 8, 2020, and residents can already book those flights online. An additional flight should see more passengers and increased traffic to the airport, Galloway said.

Delta currently operates three commercial flights to and from the airport daily. The 50-seat airplanes used are perfect for their needs, Galloway said.

“We want more flights, not bigger airlines,” Galloway said.

By the time the fourth daily flight arrives, travelers will be using a passenger bridge to board and exit the aircraft.

No one wants to walk off a plane and through the rain to get to their gate.

To remedy that, the airport commissioned and received a passenger boarding bridge more than a year ago, but a platform that connects the bridge to aircraft doors was built upside down, rendering the bridge inoperable for travelers.

“It’s just been sitting there for over a year,” Galloway said.

That is about to change.

A replacement part was recently delivered to the airport, and the bridge is now operational. The next step will be training airport employees how to properly use the machine, and with training already beginning this weekend, Galloway hopes to have the bridge ready for travelers by early 2020.

Enhancing the traveling experience remains a priority for Galloway and his colleagues, and commercial travelers are not the only ones who will enjoy new amenities.

Private flyers will see added goodies as well.

With the passing of SPLOST VIII, a new general aviation terminal will be built in the coming years. The GA terminal is used both by private and corporate flyers.

Mike Gudely, president and chief executive officer of Southeastern Credit Union, touted the benefits of a new GA terminal when stumping for SPLOST VIII at a mayoral forum in October. He emphasized that the GA terminal is the first impression prospective businesses and their leaders get when visiting Valdosta, and building a state-of-the-art terminal would help attract economic opportunities to Valdosta and Lowndes County.

Whether commercial or private, travelers will experience a different, more-improved airport in the coming years. For now, airport officials want to be prepared for more folks to see what the Valdosta Regional Airport can offer.

“We’re just getting ready for that new flight come June,” Galloway said.

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