When pilot Bob North flies between Vermont and Florida, he leaves some of his money in Suffolk each trip, taking advantage of low fuel costs where most people still consider the Suffolk Municipal Airport.

But as part of a grand effort to attract more people like North to use the city’s airport, nestled in rural Whaleyville, Suffolk has been pitching a name change to anyone who’ll listen. Since April, the facility has been called Suffolk Executive Airport, an inaccurate description of what actually exists, some airport commissioners say.

Suffolk Public Works Director Eric Nielson said the name change is part of a plan to &uot;entice more corporate tenants, including Target and Golden State, to keep their corporate planes here.&uot; But Evelyn Jones, chairman of the Airport Advisory Commission, counters that she &uot;doesn’t believe the Suffolk Executive Airport has the facilities and services needed to call itself an executive airport.&uot;

Airport officials believe fuel demand from the location is the catalyst that will take the airport to another level.

Increasingly, fuel has become the big drawing card for the Suffolk airport – one of its largest sources of revenue, explained Airport Manager Kent Marshall, who has held the position since January. All profits are pumped back in the city’s coffers; however, the money normally makes a return trip to the airport via the allocation of its operating budget.

Prior to Marshall’s arrival, sales reflected a total of 88,750 gallons of automotive, jet and piston fuel between June 1999 and June 2000.

Less than two years later, sales have more than doubled, said Marshall, who keeps a sharp eye on the totals daily. Just in the 10 months he’s been there, the airport has sold approximately 208,000 gallons of fuel.

&uot;People are thinking why go through the hassle of landing in Norfolk when they can fly another 10 minutes where there is no air traffic control to deal with,&uot; stressed Nielson, &uot;and where fuel is considerably cheaper.&uot;

North can testify to that, particularly since he happens to operate a small airport in Vermont.

&uot;I always stop in Suffolk when I’m flying between Vermont and Florida,&uot; said North.

&uot;For me, it’s convenient, in a good location and it saves me money. This same fuel that I’m paying $1.97 (per gallon) for right now would have cost me $2.61 (per gallon) in Florida this morning.&uot;

To bolster its ability to lure corporate clients like North to the airport, some major improvements are on the horizon to the tune of about $1.2 million inclusive of airport hanger, runway and safety area expansions. Federal money will absorb 80 percent of the cost; 18 percent, state; and the remainder will be paid out of local funds.

For starters, the city has extended a water main to ensure adequate fire protection and paved the way for additional sewer lines. The pending opening of a major traffic artery, the Southwest Bypass, will also provide a vehicular exit adjacent to the airport.

With the waiting list of aviators requesting hanger space, Nielson is confident that the timing was right to change the airport’s name and start planned improvements to the airport. General aviators who own and fly their small plans account for 94 aircrafts at the Suffolk Executive Airport.

&uot;There’s a lot of pent-up demand for hanger space,&uot; said Nielson said. &uot;The airport has a waiting list of more than 30 people hoping to acquire storage space for their small planes. A great number of people who want to store their planes here are from areas east of us. They are actually driving past other airports to get to us.&uot;

While the city’s future plan sounds good to some, to change the name from the Suffolk Municipal Airport to Executive Airport appears to be an exercise of futility. Initially when the name change was tossed about, most of the seven airport commissioners were opposed. Nielson said he polled them individually by the phone and at least four agreed to support the proposal.

Jones holds strong to her conviction that the city isn’t justified in calling the facility an executive airport, considering the caliber of other such facilities of such caliber she’s familiar with.

&uot;When I walk into most executive airports, there is a pilot shop, bathrooms that are 24 hours and a staff to meet-and-greet the pilots and passengers, and to pump gas,&uot; said Jones.

&uot;We don’t have anything like that,&uot; she added. &uot;I think Suffolk has the potential to become an executive airport, but we are not there yet. We need more services and a lot of other things before we can consider ourselves a corporate airport.&uot;

Another airport commissioner, Glenn Homes, agrees with Jones, and was opposed to the name change.

&uot;I’m still hoping we will make all the improvements the airport needs to make it an executive airport,&uot; Homes said. Commissioner Harvey Whitney’s only statement was that, &uot;I believe services should live up to the airport’s name and that certain amenities should be in place before such a change is made.&uot;

Despite the skepticism surrounding the airport’s name change, Nielson remains confident that changing the name was the route to take.

&uot;Part of the thought is that our goal is to be an executive airport,&uot; he said. &uot;We are ready to being servicing corporate planes…and we were willing to step up to the plate and change the name first. We think changing the name of our airport helps change our image…and will help us attract corporate-style planes.&uot;

Marshall concurs.

&uot;By changing the name first, we are setting executive airport status as our benchmark and we are striving to reach that goal,&uot; explained Marshall. Already, officials believe they are gradually reaping their reward. Two Suffolk women have signed a contract to operate a restaurant, The Throttle Back, at the airport beginning Nov. 1. Efforts to reach the new owners were unsuccessful.

He added that the owners plan to offer a full menu that appeals to airport employees and pilots, as well as other Suffolk residents. &uot;We are looking forward to good, home-cooked meals.&uot;

Contractors recently completed an estimated $270,000, 300-foot extension of one of the airport taxiways, which passed its final inspection last week, he said. Expanding the taxiway to 5,005 feet and equipping it to withstand jet weight up to 60,000 pounds lays the groundwork for the airport to handle the anticipated influx of corporate air traffic.

&uot;This was done to accommodate what I’m calling corporate row,&uot; said Marshall.

Engineers are now in the site development phase for an area near the new taxiway, which will be used by the airport’s future corporate clients in the years to come. While federal and state funds are paying for the site work, the city plans to invest up to $500,000 to construct eight hangars to serve corporate tenants. Construction is scheduled to begin in spring 2003.

&uot;It’s all about economic development,&uot; said Marshall. &uot;Once we have the hangars, we can go out and offer this as an incentive to attract companies. The city has two strong prospects that are ready to commit to the hangars.&uot;

Companies will also be able to purchase a franchise lot, allowing them to build structures for aviation-related businesses on the property.

The franchise agreements stipulate that buildings on the property will revert to the city’s ownership after 30 years.