A cover letter describing the Grant Request, the sponsoring government entity and any co-sponsors;

Airport operating budgets for the previous two years showing revenues and expenses. Expenses and revenues should be broken down on an object basis according to GAAP.

Airport operating budget for the current fiscal or calendar year showing planned expenses and anticipated revenues.

Air Service Development Action Plan--general description, including as much detail as possible.

• What is the primary objective of your plan?
• What do you hope to accomplish: upgrade service, new hubs, more airlines, lower fares, more frequent flights, etc.?
• What do you not expect to accomplish with this grant?
• If you intend to conduct a study(s) as a portion of your action plan, what type will you conduct:
  • deficiency studies
  • ticket air lift surveys
  • parking lot studies
  • zip code studies
  • passenger surveys
  • demographic comparisons
  • fare analyses
  • traffic bleed analyses
  • other?
• Will you hire to fill any full-time equivalent position(s) to carry out the action plan now or in the future?
• Do you expect to hire or employ any type of consulting firm or public-relations firm to assist you?
• If you have an existing Action Plan that a Federal grant from this program will assist, shop existing funding sources and amounts, and describe the existing program with sufficient detail to explain or define the past, the current situation, and any existing 5-year, 10-year, and 20-year plans.
• If this is a new program, what are the immediate, mid-term, and long-term goals?
• Does the airport have an existing master plan or airport layout plan that details any airside or groundside capacity-related projects that must be completed or will be required if the airport is successful in reaching its goals?
• Are Federal AIP funds currently obligated, through a Letter of Intent or otherwise, for any Federal-eligible project identified above.
• What is the construction timeline of all Federal-eligible projects identified above?
• How should the effectiveness of your Action Plan be measured?

Budget for near-term (immediate to five-year) air service improvement strategies--immediate action plan

• Anticipated local share
  • Actual funds from all sources, including local government (budgeted amount, current, and projected for the proposed life of the Grant Agreement), local businesses and organizations (contributions), airlines, airport users.
  • Value and description of in-kind services.
• Anticipated state contribution
  • Actual funds from current program
  • Anticipated new funds for this program
• Expected Federal contribution
  • Budget request
• Total of all Funds Available for Action Plan

Projected budget for mid-term and long-term (5-year and beyond) Air service Improvement Strategies

• Expected local contribution
  • Actual funds from all sources, including local government (budgeted amount, current, and projected for the proposed life of the Grant Agreement), local businesses and organizations (contributions), airlines, airport users.
  • Value and description of in-kind services.
• Expected state contribution
  • Actual funds from current program
• Anticipated new funds for this program
  

 

At a Minimum, Proposals Should Include the Following:

Description of the community's existing air service

• service frequency
• direct and connecting destinations offered
• available fares
• equipment types

Synopsis of the community's historical service

• destinations
• traffic levels
• service providers
• extenuating factors that might have affected traffic in the past or that can be expected to influence service needs in the near to intermediate term

Analysis of the community's air service needs or deficiencies

comparison of fares currently offered at the community to those offered at similar communities in similarly served markets

Strategic plan for meeting those needs through the pilot program

• specific project goal
• timetable for attaining that goal
• self sufficiency of the new or improved service should be an integral part of the goal

Description of the public-private partnership

• partnership can be either an existing organization or a new one
• public member of the organization should be identified as the community's sponsor to accept program reimbursements

Analysis of the funding necessary for implementation of the community's project

• include federal and non-federal contribution
• federal contributions should represent new financial resources devoted to attracting new or improved service or address a specific high-fare issue.

Explanation of how the community will provide assurances that its own funding contribution is spent in the manner proposed

Description of how the community will monitor the success of the program

• how the community intends to notify the Department of critical milestones during the life of the program, including the need to modify, or discontinue funding

Proposals should show an attempt to stimulate new demand at the local airport and make that service more attractive so that local passengers would no longer have the incentives to drive to a neighboring airport