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Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2009 > July > 09 > Entry
Editorial: Dayton hangs on to a keeper at airport
Dayton caught a break this week when Jacksonville, Fla., decided not to pick Iftikhar Ahmad as its new airport director.
On the job since 2006, Mr. Ahmad is a hot property. In just a short time, he’s put important improvements in motion, while at the same time ensuring that the airport stayed busy, even as many people were cutting out business and leisure travel.
He’s achieved that in large part by reducing enplanement costs from around $14 in 2006 to $4.50. That’s the fee that airlines pay per passenger to fly in and out of an airport. Cutting this cost can make flying out of Dayton cheaper than, say, Columbus or Cincinnati, because it’s an especially important consideration for low-cost carriers.
Mr. Ahmad took a pay cut to become Dayton’s airport director. He had been a vice president in Nashville, and, prior to that, an airport executive in Houston. Those who’ve watched him see an ambitious individual who wants to leave a mark.
He has gotten that opportunity in Dayton, but Jacksonville presented the chance to potentially double his $124,000 salary and to oversee four airports that are run by an authority. Instead of reporting to an assistant city manager, Mr. Ahmad’s boss would have been a board of directors. Airport administrators think they have more freedom and latitude under this arrangement, and they also can make more money.
Mr. Ahmad is driving changes that will be with Dayton for a long time: A new three-story parking garage has been started, a new control tower is being built, the inside of the terminal is getting a makeover with new shops and eateries in the works.
The goal is to create amenities associated with larger airports, without the hassle — hence Dayton’s slogan “Easy to and through.”
Mr. Ahmad has impressive marketing instincts and works with a sharp pencil. He’s needed these skills to survive in a climate that couldn’t have been worse for promoting Dayton and hustling to keep, and to get more, flights.
Recently, NCR’s Bill Nuti, when he was explaining why his company is moving to Georgia, noted that Atlanta has easy access to international flights. Even if he was just looking for excuses, Mr. Nuti was making the indisputable point that easy air travel catches the eyes of companies.
Dayton can’t compete with Atlanta on that score, which is why Mr. Ahmad has to be especially creative in appealing to airlines. His goal, he says, is to eventually bring enplanement costs down to zero, and possibly even pay airlines to fly to and from Dayton. Either situation, he says, would be unprecedented in the industry.
(Incidentally, Mr Ahmad isn’t buying Mr. Nuti’s point. He says traffic congestion into Atlanta’s airport cuts into any time savings for travelers; he also says that connections from Dayton to bigger airports, or even car trips to Columbus or Cincinnati for international flights, can be easier than getting in and out of the country’s busiest airport.)
Mr. Ahmad is not just making over Dayton’s airport; he’s also building his resume, which, by all rights, will get him considered in bigger places. Because those chances will inevitably come, he needs to be grooming a successor.
In the meantime, Dayton is giving him a great opportunity to show his talent, and Dayton is benefiting from the fact that he’s eager to prove he can take a hard job and make it look easy.
Permalink | Comments (5) | Post your comment | Categories: City of Dayton, Editorials, Ellen Belcher, Transportation
Comments
By Rob
July 10, 2009 10:48 AM | Link to this
Yup, he can clearly do the job. As a frequent traveller, trust me on this, our airport rocks. Now, if I could just figure out the parking lots…By Frequent Flyer
July 10, 2009 12:26 PM | Link to this
Are you kidding me? Did Mr. Ahmad write this himself? What he is making from enplanements he is taking from everywhere else. Has anyone noticed how dirty everything is? The carpet, the bathrooms, everything. The public saftey departments are taking a hit too. They have no budget and pretty soon they will have to pay to go to work. All the improvements you see are visual, what he has cut to make it possible makes you vunerable while you are there. As a business man, I can see that he is running the airport dry, and soon, there won’t be an airport to fly out of.By Rob
July 10, 2009 2:08 PM | Link to this
Wow…do we fly out of the same airport??? Planes depart on time, there is adequate parking even with all the construction, My wait to go through security is maybe 15 minutes… No, our little airport is doing just fine. Clearly, most folk don’t see the dirt you do…By Levi
July 13, 2009 12:55 AM | Link to this
What does departure time and TSA wait time have to do with the director? Those are seperate entities in an airport outside the control of the Director of Aviation. While I don’t agree completely with ‘Frequent’, I have noticed it is a little dirty. They have had the same carpet forever..By arnold
July 19, 2009 7:48 PM | Link to this
The airport is part of the City of Dayton, yet it is very well run, so is the Water department. Both are almost entirely outside the control of that Mayor because of Federal and State laws.