Not long after, in 2015, the Port officially opened a brand-new terminal, which offered passengers and pilots plenty of lounge and conference areas to either plan the return flight home, hold a business meeting or simply relax while executives take care of their dealings in the Port District. Rental car services along with refueling options were also added in the terminal, along with general vending. This year, the airport opened its first public transient hangar — conveniently named “Hangar 1,” referring to its status as the first non-private hangar on the field — which is suited for the aircraft of daily and overnight visitors and equipped to handle every foreseeable need of the traveler and flight crew. The $700,000 hangar protects aircraft from the array of dubious weather found in South Louisiana and features storage units for passenger property and restrooms. Caire affectionately calls the public hangar an “Aircraft Hotel.” Phases of the airport plan are being accomplished, and Caire said improvements will always continue at the facility as the demands and traveler’s needs change with time. For instance, transitioning from incandescent to LED lighting in the aircraft operating areas, as well as larger capital projects like additional public hangar space —tweaks both minor and major impovements, all done to attract more travelers. “The traffic is obviously increasing,” Caire said. “As for quantifying it, I can tell you that new traffic patterns are continuously developing. Business aircraft don’t operate on a schedule like commercial airlines, but use by corporate jets will continue to increase over time. The outstanding feature of this airport clearly demonstrated thus far, is that it is small enough to be personal to both crews and passengers, and large enough to support the majority of business jets on a service level equal to larger airports.” •
The number of corporate jets utilizing the Executive Regional Airport is on the uptick.