Commercial Service Welcomed … And Banished

It’s a tale of two cities, aviation style. As Naples, Fla., celebrates the resumption of commercial air service to its municipal airport, New Jersey congressman Steve Rothman (D-N.J.) is trumpeting a new provision that has banished scheduled charter service from Teterboro (known to some as the busiest GA airport in the country). Reporters and TV crews greeted the arrival of a Cape Air flight from Key West to Naples that marked a new beginning for scheduled service. The airline left Naples last June because business was too slow. Now it’s operating two daily round trips to the Keys and serving as a Continental Connection to Miami International. At Teterboro, it’s federal legislation that will limit commercial operations. Language inserted as part of the FAA Reauthorization Bill now makes Teterboro off-limits to charter carriers that were running up to five scheduled flights a day into the airport, which is close to Manhattan. The measure will keep major tourist areas from using charters as a way of funneling their customers through Teterboro instead of the area’s major airports. A separate bill to bar large jets from Teterboro has passed the House and will go before the Senate in the New Year.