Boston Maine Airways

Direct Air (to Myrtle Beach, S.C. and Lakeland, Fla.) - June 23, 2011- Aug. 21, 2011 Cape Air (to BWI) - March 2009 to present Allegiant Air (to Orlando) - November 2008-July 2010 Air Midwest (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh) - May 2004-September 2007 Shuttle America (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh) - May 2002-May 2004 Boston-Maine Airways (to BWI and Cumberland) - December 2001-June 2003 Chautauqua Airlines (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh)

Local flights to BWI begin By SCOTT BUTKI scottb@herald-mail.com Four years after losing air service to Baltimore-Washington International Airport, Hagerstown Regional Airport gained it again as daily air service from Hagerstown to Baltimore resumed Friday. Boston-Maine Airways of Portsmouth, N.H., a division of Pan American, is taking passengers from Cumberland, Md., to BWI with a stop in Hagerstown through a route called the Clipper Connection. About 12 people used the service on the first day, said Dan Fortnam, vice president of sales for Boston-Maine Airways.

Round-trip flight helps salute new service to BWI By ANDREW SCHOTZ andrews@herald-mail.com There was hoopla in the sky over Maryland Tuesday when a twin-turbo propeller plane flew from Hagerstown to Baltimore in 31 minutes and back to Hagerstown in 21. The flights were two in a series of trips trumpeting the return of regional air service. Buoyed by $2.25 million in state money, Boston-Maine Airways is operating the Pan Am Clipper Connection between Cumberland, Hagerstown and Baltimore.

Boston-Maine flights start By JULIE E. GREENE julieg@herald-mail.com Daily flights to Baltimore-Washington International Airport from Hagerstown Regional Airport will begin on Dec. 28. Boston-Maine Airways of Portsmouth, N.H., a division of Pan American, received certification this week from the Federal Aviation Administration to provide passenger air service to Baltimore from Hagerstown and Cumberland, Md. ...

Hagerstown Regional Airport's proposal to bring in a third airline and start service to Philadelphia has fallen through, Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said Tuesday. Two airlines fly out of Hagerstown - the US Airways Express goes to Pittsburgh and the Pan Am Clipper Connection links Baltimore, Hagerstown and Cumberland, Md. Shuttle America took over the US Airways Express from Chautauqua Airlines in May. Boston-Maine Airways began the Pan Am Clipper Connection last December.

laurae@herald-mail.com Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich slashed a state subsidy for air service from Hagerstown and Cumberland to Baltimore-Washington International Airport, possibly curtailing the service by the end of June. Washington County lawmakers were not confident they could convince Ehrlich to restore the $750,000 that had been promised when the program began. Flights on Boston-Maine Airways' Pan Am Clipper Connection began a little more than a year ago with the help of $4.25 million from the state over nearly two years.

Airport in discussions with third airline By SCOTT BUTKI scottb@herald-mail.com Hagerstown Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said Tuesday she is involved in talks with officials of an airline about offering passenger service at the airport. An announcement on the matter could be made in the near future. She refused to elaborate and would not identify the airline involved in the talks. Motz told the Washington County Board of Commissioners Tuesday that one of the goals of a proposed marketing plan for the airport was to get a third air carrier.

Airport raises facility charge By SCOTT BUTKI scottb@herald-mail.com Hagerstown Regional Airport will start charging a higher passenger facility charge for scheduled flights beginning March 1. The higher charge will help raise $308,000 for three projects at the airport, said Chuck Trice, project engineer for New Jersey-based URS, a consultant to the airport. The charge is presently $3 per flight, but will increase to $4.50 starting March 1. The airport began imposing the $3 charge in 1999 after receiving permission from the Federal Aviation Administration to do so. Most airports in the area charge a fee of about $4.50, Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said.

andrews@herald-mail.com US Airways' bankruptcy is not expected to affect the airline's service from Hagerstown to Pittsburgh. "We don't anticipate any impact to the schedule," said Scott Durgin, chief executive officer of Shuttle America, which operates the US Airways Express franchise at Hagerstown Regional Airport. If US Airways planned to change its Hagerstown service, Shuttle America would already know, Durgin said Tuesday during a telephone interview from the company's Windsor Locks, Conn.

scottb@herald-mail.com Plans call for a year-old air service from the Cumberland, Md., and Hagerstown airports to Baltimore-Washington International Airport to continue past June even if the state subsidy is eliminated, an official with the airline said Wednesday. Dan Fortnam, vice president of sales and marketing for Boston-Maine's Clipper Connection, and Carolyn Motz, Hagerstown Regional Airport manager, said Wednesday they are confident the airline will be financially self-sufficient by the time the current subsidy runs out June 30, the end of the fiscal year.

Direct Air (to Myrtle Beach, S.C. and Lakeland, Fla.) - June 23, 2011- Aug. 21, 2011 Cape Air (to BWI) - March 2009 to present Allegiant Air (to Orlando) - November 2008-July 2010 Air Midwest (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh) - May 2004-September 2007 Shuttle America (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh) - May 2002-May 2004 Boston-Maine Airways (to BWI and Cumberland) - December 2001-June 2003 Chautauqua Airlines (US Airways flights to Pittsburgh)

In the post-9/11 world in which travelers are less likely to choose airplanes over cars for short trips, it is not too surprising that the airline commuter service flying passengers from the Hagerstown Regional Airport to the Baltimore-Washington International Airport would not be viable, a Hagerstown airport official said Tuesday. Airport officials think a more viable operation could be run from Hagerstown directly to other locations farther away, such as airports near New York City and North Carolina, and other undisclosed destinations, Airport Business Development Manager Greg Larsen said Tuesday.

scottb@herald-mail.com Plans call for a year-old air service from the Cumberland, Md., and Hagerstown airports to Baltimore-Washington International Airport to continue past June even if the state subsidy is eliminated, an official with the airline said Wednesday. Dan Fortnam, vice president of sales and marketing for Boston-Maine's Clipper Connection, and Carolyn Motz, Hagerstown Regional Airport manager, said Wednesday they are confident the airline will be financially self-sufficient by the time the current subsidy runs out June 30, the end of the fiscal year.

laurae@herald-mail.com Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich slashed a state subsidy for air service from Hagerstown and Cumberland to Baltimore-Washington International Airport, possibly curtailing the service by the end of June. Washington County lawmakers were not confident they could convince Ehrlich to restore the $750,000 that had been promised when the program began. Flights on Boston-Maine Airways' Pan Am Clipper Connection began a little more than a year ago with the help of $4.25 million from the state over nearly two years.

scottb@herald-mail.com HAGERSTOWN - The number of paid ticket-holders using a state-subsidized airline to fly to or from Hagerstown to Baltimore-Washington International Airport averaged about 2.4 people per flight on the 19-seat plane, according to information released Wednesday by Hagerstown Regional Airport. Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said Thursday she is satisfied with the passenger statistics because the service is only one year old and encountered problems along the way. Even at its peak, in April, the airline carried an average of fewer than four passengers per flight, according to statistics.

scottb@herald-mail.com Local officials will challenge a state agency's recommendation that a state subsidy be ended this summer for a year-old air service connecting the Cumberland and Hagerstown airports with Baltimore-Washington International Airport. The state originally agreed to subsidize the service by $5 million over a three-year period but instead it is now spending $4.25 million over less than two years. Hagerstown Regional Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said she is asking the local delegation to the Maryland General Assembly to join her in a push to get a state subsidy of $750,000 so the service can continue for one more year.

andrews@herald-mail.com US Airways' bankruptcy is not expected to affect the airline's service from Hagerstown to Pittsburgh. "We don't anticipate any impact to the schedule," said Scott Durgin, chief executive officer of Shuttle America, which operates the US Airways Express franchise at Hagerstown Regional Airport. If US Airways planned to change its Hagerstown service, Shuttle America would already know, Durgin said Tuesday during a telephone interview from the company's Windsor Locks, Conn.

Hagerstown Regional Airport's proposal to bring in a third airline and start service to Philadelphia has fallen through, Airport Manager Carolyn Motz said Tuesday. Two airlines fly out of Hagerstown - the US Airways Express goes to Pittsburgh and the Pan Am Clipper Connection links Baltimore, Hagerstown and Cumberland, Md. Shuttle America took over the US Airways Express from Chautauqua Airlines in May. Boston-Maine Airways began the Pan Am Clipper Connection last December.

At a time when state money is scarce, spending $2 million to subsidize an air service used by only a handful of people every day might seem like a luxury. But Washington County lawmakers and Hagerstown Regional Airport officials are trying to preserve the fledgling program, which is marked to be cut from the state's $22 billion budget. The House version of the budget keeps the subsidy, but the Senate version eliminates it. The issue will be resolved by a conference committee sometime in the next two weeks.

Hagerstown's university project may survive a key round of budget cuts, but Hagerstown Regional Airport's new commuter air service took a hit Thursday. A Senate subcommittee recommended eliminating the $2 million subsidy for the flights that just got in the air Dec. 28. Even if the Senate agrees to the cut, the House may restore the money because it's Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr.'s brainchild. Boston-Maine Airways of Portsmouth, N.H., a division of Pan American, bought $7 million worth of airplanes expecting to continue its service from Cumberland, Md., and Hagerstown to Baltimore-Washington International Airport, Sen. Donald F. Munson, R-Washington, told fellow members of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee.