This question has been asked since the early 1970s. The project is in the current JaxEx Master Plan and if implemented would increase the economic impact of the airport, increase the margin of safety for operations at the airport and allow larger corporate business jets to use the airport. Given community and city opposition to the project, JAA is not pursuing the project at this time. Until such time as community and city leaders and JAA can come together to reach an agreement that locks in the future of the airport, JAA’s position is that it will work on other projects that provide economic benefits to the city and financial return to JAA. In the absence of a long term agreement, the Board of Directors of JAA could change this position at any time.

JAA staff routinely monitors how long it takes for an airline to deliver the in-bound bags from the aircraft to the carousel.  It is airline staff or their contractors who actually deliver the bags, not JAA personnel.  The overwhelming majority of bags are delivered in a timely manner; ten minutes for the first bag to 20 minutes for the last bag on a flight after it arrives at the gate.  Delays do happen and they usually occur in the evening.  The airlines staff the baggage delivery function according to their daily flight schedule.  An aircraft may have flown all over the country in a given day and may have time delays at any one of those stops.  If the time lost in those delays cannot be made up, a particular aircraft at the end of the day may arrive quite late at its final destination, in this case Jacksonville.  So instead of one aircraft arriving at a given point in time, the airline may be faced with 2-3 arrivals and could not arrange for the extra staff needed to deliver all the bags from each flight within their company’s standards. 

While there are many factors that an airline considers in deciding what routes to serve, two of the primary factors are how many people want to fly that route on a daily basis and how much money can the airline make on that flight.  Another important factor is that airlines like to make the most use of their hubs by funneling as much traffic as possible through the hub.  From a domestic perspective, JAA believes that there is enough demand in Northeast Florida to support long haul service to the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas.  JAA staff meets multiple times a year with representatives from the airlines to press for such service but airports do not have much influence in airline route decisions since the industry was deregulated in 1978.  From an international perspective, there currently is international service to Marsh Harbor in the Bahamas.  Additionally, JIA receives about 30 international flights a month on privately owned aircraft.  Future international service will likely come from other Caribbean, Central and South American destinations.  Demand for service to Europe and Asia will likely not reach the point where airline service is justified for many years.  It should be pointed out that from Jacksonville, a passenger can reach just about any major city in the world with one stop.

While as mentioned above, airports do not have much influence in an airline’s decision making process, there are a number of tools used by JAA staff to encourage airlines to start service in new markets.  JAA staff provides airline route planners with detailed information on the Jacksonville market that they might not be able to find in their usual data sources - such things as the business connections between the two cities or major events such as THE PLAYERS, One Spark and others that might bring people to Jacksonville from those markets.  JAA staff conducts numerous meetings each year with the airline route planners both in their corporate offices and also in Jacksonville.   JAA staff involves community and business leaders in these efforts to show the airline that the demand is there for the service.  JAA has also adopted an incentive program to attract new air service.  Certain fees can be waived for up to one year on domestic service and two years on international service to ensure that an airline has the best chance of making money on new routes.  Additionally, JAA will provide funds for marketing the new service and ensuring that the traveling public is aware that the service is available.  Airlines find this marketing assistance extremely valuable.  Once launched, it is up to the community to use the service to make it successful.  Airlines do not give new service a lot of time to prove itself.  After a number of months if the service is not well used the airline will pull it out and it will be that much more difficult to get it back.  That’s why it is extremely important for the community to support these new non-stop destinations.

JAA is a major economic engine for the City of Jacksonville and the Northeast Florida region.  According to the State of Florida, JAA’s economic impact is in excess of $3 billion per year.  This includes the salaries paid to the thousands of people that work at the four airports managed by JAA, the items bought by all of the companies at the airports, including JAA itself, as well as the economic activity that comes from that money working its way through the economy.  All of this economic activity comes at no cost to the citizens of the region as JAA receives no general tax dollars from the city.  As aviation and aerospace companies are attracted to JAA’s four airports, the economic impact is expected to grow substantially.

Cecil Airport (Cecil) has become a huge success story for JAA and the City of Jacksonville.  Since taking control of Cecil from the Navy in 2000 (then called Cecil Field), JAA has marketed the facility as an industrial airport with a very attractive operating environment for companies needing access to an airfield.  JAA inherited approximately 1.2 million square feet of building space from the Navy and has leased out all of that space and, along with its partners has constructed more than 500,000 square feet of space that is fully leased.  Today, more than 4,000 people work at Cecil Airport and in the adjoining Cecil Commerce Center.  JAA has just opened up 150 acres on the east side of Cecil for industrial aviation development.  Additionally, Cecil is the eighth licensed commercial spaceport in the U.S. and is open for horizontal launch spacecraft.  JAA is constructing the infrastructure for the spaceport and has already seen its first test flight of a commercial space vehicle.  This is an industry in its infancy but one that will play an important role in the future of Cecil Airport and the City of Jacksonville.

JAA is an independent authority, established under a state charter and is a part of the consolidated government of the City of Jacksonville.  It is user supported and receives no general tax dollars from the City of Jacksonville.  Much like a private sector company, JAA must take in enough money each month to pay its bills or it could go bankrupt.  Neither the city nor the state is required to step in and pay JAA’s bills.  Thus, all users of JAA’s four airports (Jacksonville International Airport, Cecil Airport, Jacksonville Executive at Craig Airport and Herlong Recreational Airport) are charged fees for that use.  This includes tenants such as airlines, concessionaires, vehicle parkers, companies that lease land and buildings from JAA, and others.  JAA receives grants from the federal and state governments to construct projects at its four airports.  These grants come from funds that users have paid into the system from taxes on aviation fuel and airline tickets.  The positive cash flow that JAA generates is put into either capital projects or JAA’s reserve funds.

The vision for JAA is to enhance its position as a major economic engine for the City of Jacksonville and the entire Northeast Florida region.  JAA currently contributes approximately $3 billion to the local economy from its own activities and those of its many tenants.  JAA accomplishes this vision through its mission which involves providing the best air transportation facilities and meeting and exceeding customer expectations.  JIA routinely ranks in the top 5 of most customer friendly airports in North America, Cecil is known for its positive operating environment for aerospace companies and JaxEx and Herlong provide excellent facilities for corporate and privately owned aircraft.  Each airport is the home to numerous aviation related businesses that all contribute to the success of JAA in serving the community.

Security at JIA is a top priority and is multi-faceted with a number of agencies involved.  JAA maintains its own police force which is charged with providing security in all facilities controlled by JAA.  They work closely with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office which also has jurisdiction on JAA property and provides extensive support services to the JAA police unit.  JAA officers patrol the terminal building and the grounds as well as the other three airports under JAA’s purview.  The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) provides regulatory oversight and is directly responsible for screening luggage and passengers.  JAA provides the TSA with an Airport Security Plan which complies with all federal regulations and is the blueprint for security at JIA.  A number of other agencies, both state and federal are active in the airport environment and truly make security a team effort.

All of the retail shops and restaurants at JIA have concession agreements with the JAA.  Within those agreements is a pricing regime called “Street Pricing Plus 10”.  Simply put, these vendors can charge no more than 10% above what a similar store off the airport would charge.  The key to this concept is similar store.  You might be able to find a product substantially cheaper at say a Walmart but it is more likely that a 7/11 type of store is used for comparison.  Where a brand name has a location at JIA, prices should be no more that 10% above the prices at the same brand off the airport.  JAA staff periodically monitors prices and compares them to appropriate locations off the airport.

All jobs that are available for public applications are advertised on the JAA website, flyJacksonville.com.  The completion of an application is an online process which makes it much easier for people to apply.  Once someone applies for a position, communication is maintained to inform applicants of the status of the position recruitment.  All positions at JAA go through a formal process to select the right candidate.