Conceptual digital image of proposed terminal at Cleveland, Tenn.’s new jetport.CLEVELAND, Tenn. — The Cleveland Municipal Airport Authority has decided to retain the services of Crystal Air for the city’s new jetport, which is expected to be completed by the end of the month.
On Monday, the board voted 5-0 to create a hybrid operational command for the new jetport in which Crystal Air, which also operates Cleveland’s Hardwick Airfield, will answer to Mark Fidler, the new airport’s director of marketing and operations.
The board rejected an option to create a staff of three employees who would perform the daily operations that Crystal Air would handle.
Very few items differentiated the cost of the two management proposals, said Lynn DeVault, chairwoman of the Airport Authority. However, the use of fixed-base operator Crystal Air would make the initial launch of the airport much easier with a number of in-house services immediately available to the airfield, she said.
“There’s some subjective things we need to think about,” said DeVault. “If we do not choose [to use Crystal Air], we will not have a flight school, and will not immediately have on-site mechanical [service] … and we will not have a charter service.”