Chattanooga Airport Chief Executive Officer Terry Hart on Monday said he's retiring this summer from the post he has held for nearly 12 years, and officials named a Lovell Field veteran to fill the CEO chair.
April Cameron, 46, vice president of finance for the past 20 years, was chosen by the Airport Authority as the new president and chief executive, effective Aug. 1.
Hart, 62, was an American Eagle executive when he came to Chattanooga almost 16 years ago as vice president of operations before taking the CEO job in 2011, and he said he plans to return to Chicago.
The airport chief, with 43 years in aviation, said in an interview that Cameron will do "a very good job for the organization. She cares and has a very big heart."
Jim Hall, Airport Authority chairman, said at a meeting of the panel that Hart's tenure was bookended by the 2012 renovation of the passenger terminal and work on the $28 million expansion of the facility that's now ongoing. He said Cameron has worked alongside Hart during that time and is the longest-serving member of the executive team.
Dan Jacobson, the authority's vice chairman, said at the meeting that the panel didn't gamble when it hired Hart, and he didn't think the board is gambling with the elevation of Cameron to the top job at the airport.
Cameron, who joined the airport staff while she was working on a degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, said in an interview that she "fell in love" with the airport.
"I was so intrigued with the work we do here," said Cameron, who's from Rhea County and is married with two children. "You tend to find people who enter aviation never seem to leave that field. The industry draws you in and keeps you there."
Cameron takes the top post amid work on the terminal expansion, the most costly such project in the airport's history, that's slated to wrap up in 2024.
At the same time, the airport is trying to recapture passengers lost when the pandemic lowered air travel demand worldwide in 2020.
In 2019, Lovell Field had set an all-time high mark of 554,050 passenger boardings, which was the fifth consecutive year of record traffic in Chattanooga.
But boardings fell in 2020 by 59.3% over the prior year, and airlines have been slow to put more planes into the air amid a shortage of pilots and other personnel. Boardings in 2022 were up sharply over 2021, but still 21.9% behind the record year of 2019.
Cameron said Hart "did a phenomenal job" of building relationships with the airlines to woo added service, and she plans to continue that effort.
"Going forward, our focus continues to be drawing on those relationships and building on those relationships so when resources are available, they're aware of what's going on in Chattanooga," she said.
Cameron said the airport is an economic development tool.
"Our ability to provide nonstop destinations is critical," she said.
Cameron will earn $185,000 annually as CEO, according to the airport.
The airport, which has a staff of 50 people, is a passion for her, the official said.
"My passion has always been to make the airport successful," she said. "That's the passion of a lot of people here."
Cameron said she didn't initially have an interest in pursuing the CEO job, "but when it presented itself, I knew this was where I was supposed to be. I'm very honored Terry and the board placed their confidence in me."
Hart listed several accomplishments during his tenure, including growing boardings, overseeing the pair of terminal projects, the building of the airport's first parking garage and attracting United Airlines to the city.
An important one was enhancing the general aviation experience at the airport, he said. Constructing the new general aviation terminal on the west side of the main runway and acquiring the lease-hold rights from TAC Air after a long battle dramatically changed general aviation at Chattanooga Airport, Hart said.
"It wasn't easy at first, but in the long run it was the best thing for this airport and for our customers," he said. "We control the experience now."
Paul Conn, the authority's personnel committee chairman, said Hart provided "visionary leadership for the airport."
"He becomes a very tough act to follow, but we think we have that great successor," he said, adding that Cameron "has been a key part of a winning team."
Ellis Smith, Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly's director of special projects, said at the meeting that Hart built "a firm foundation" and lauded Cameron's work at the airport.
TERRY HART TIMELINE
— 2007: Joined Chattanooga Airport as vice president of operations.
— 2011: Named interim airport president.
— 2012: Chosen president and CEO; initial solar farm opened February 2012; Wilson Air Center first LEED platinum-certified general aviation terminal in the world.
— 2013: Terminal renovation project began.
— 2014: Airport purchased lease-hold interests of TAC Air in Chattanooga; terminal renovation completed.
— 2015: West Star Aviation announced maintenance facility at airport.
— 2016: Wilson Air Center hanger expansion.
— 2018: West Star expanded.
— 2019: Boardings hit record 554,050.
— 2021: Parking garage opened.
— 2022: Terminal expansion started.
— 2023: Hart announced retirement.
Source: Chattanooga Airport
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.