Air Charter Express (New York) (Rome, NY) has applied for authority to operate scheduled services as a commuter air carrier in order to bid for Essential Air Services (EAS) for small airports throughout the lower 48 United States.
As soon as governmental approval is received, Air Charter Express intends to bid for EAS services, “many of which are being dropped prior to completion by other scheduled air carriers,” it said in a regulatory filing on May 13. It is currently working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to upgrade its FAR Part 135 (air taxi) certificate and operations specifications to encompass commuter air carrier operations.
Incorporated in 1997 and based at New Harford in New York state, the US limited liability company currently operates year-round on-demand air charters with in-house six-to-nine-seater Piper (twin piston) PA-31-350s (Navajo Chieftains), which will also be used for the EAS services.
According to the financials submitted, Air Charter Express is a subsidiary of Flightline Aircraft Services, a ground handling company wholly-owned by entrepreneur Robert Lowe. The parent company had total assets of USD1.4 million and total liabilities of USD530,000 as of December 31, 2021.
Lowe also owns two sister companies, Island Seas Air Charters and Stars Air Cargo, and has previous experience as station manager for Piedmont Airlines (PT, Salisbury, MD) and Henson Airlines (Salisbury, MD), according to documents before the DOT.
Lowe also operates Twilight Broadcasting which owns and operates radio stations in Pennsylvania; co-owns the Clinton Terminal Railroad in North Carolina; and Rail Holdings Inc, which owns and operates two short line railroads in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, his LinkedIn profile reveals.
