PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Sooner or later, and possibly this month, the U.S. Department of Transportation will announce its pick for the airline and destination that will serve the Northern Maine Regional Airport over the next two years.
Thursday, March 8, marked 30 days since the closing of the bid process for the federal Essential Air Service program that subsidizes air service at Northern Maine Regional and 172 other rural communities.
One month is a typical timeline for U.S. DOT officials to make a decision on which airline will get the two-year contract, said Melissa Roberts, spokesperson for Pen Air, the airline that has held the contract to provide daily Boston-Presque Isle flights since 2012.
“It’s a painful wait for us,” Roberts said.
The Presque Isle City Council voted 5-1 on Jan. 22 to recommend that the U.S. DOT approve a bid from United Airlines to provide daily service from Presque Isle to its hub at Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey.
The majority of the councillors followed the advice of the city’s airport advisory committee and said the Newark hub would serve a broader array of national and international destinations for Aroostook County’s air travelling public.
However, Pen air is counting on the help of dozens of Aroostook County residents who now rely on the airline to travel to Boston, particularly for special medical treatment, to help it sway U.S. DOT officials to continue its contract.
The DOT received more than 350 letters in support of continuing Pen Air service, according to the documents posted with the contract’s file on Regulations.gov.
Many people cited the link to Boston as a crucial asset for Aroostook County residents who need medical treatment for complex conditions such as cancer and can access top specialists at Boston-area medical centers through referral programs at Maine hospitals.
“Living in rural Maine is a choice I have never regretted until the day my husband was diagnosed with cancer,” wrote Patty Corriveau of Caribou. “Flying directly to Boston for his treatments and directly back to Presque Isle made it possible for him to receive the treatments to keep him alive. We continue to fight this disease at Dana Farber in Boston.”
Other contributing letters of support for Pen Air came from people with family in southern New England and members of the business community, including leaders from McCain Foods, ReEnergy and smaller businesses.
Theresa Fowler, executive director of the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce, said that the organization will work with whichever airline earns the contract to promote travel and business in Aroostook County.
The Chamber’s board and staff “are anxiously awaiting the decision on the EAS provider,” Fowler said.
“At this point we are waiting to produce tourism promotion material and advertisements until we know what airline will be serving the region and what the flight schedules will be,” Fowler said. “This area is very dependent on dependable air service for ease of business and leisure travel.”
