Valdosta Regional Airport receives grant from the FAA

VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - Some Georgia airports will be receiving a grant from the Federal Aviation Administration to help with the effects of COVID-19.

The CARES Act aims to support continuing airport operations and provide immediate financial relief for expenses and lost revenue.

Valdosta Regional Airport will soon get over a million dollars to help out in a time when most people aren’t traveling.

“The CARES Act allows us to use that money for operations and maintenance. In other words, where we are falling short on revenue. Like what we get from car rentals, we can use CARES Act money to make up that difference, so it’s quite different from what we are used to in normal grants,” said Jim Galloway, the Executive Director of the Valdosta Lowndes County Airport Authority.

As far as what the airport will be using the money for specifically, that has not been decided. Galloway tells me the airport authority must meet to discuss future plans. That meeting is taking place on May 13.

“My recommendation to the authority would be that there is a couple of large ticketed items that we have differed maintenance wise. Like a roof on the commercial airline terminal and air handler for the commercial terminal and the pay other expenses that we would normally pay of revenues we would generate like the car rentals, electricity, payroll that sort of thing and then pay out of that to offset the loss of revenue," said Galloway.

The Georgia Department of Transportation is administering the money. The airport already applied for the grant and the next step is for the City of Valdosta to receive it.

According to Galloway, the FAA is trying to get the grants out to the airport as soon as possible so they can continue operations and use it as a stimulus for the local economy.

“We are grateful for the CARES Act and we will use the money wisely,” said Galloway

Currently, the airport has one Delta flight per day. With an average of 8-10 passengers flying.

Previously, they had three flights per day, Sunday through Friday and two on Saturday. Those flights with 56 seats used to be full.

The airport hopes to resume full operations starting in June.

Georgia will receive the fourth-highest amount of funding in the nation for its airports. Included is one of the world’s busiest airports, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, and seven additional commercial airports like Albany, Augusta, Brunswick, Columbus, Macon, and Savannah.

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