Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/742977
V O L . X X I I N O. X X V O C T O B E R 3 1 , 2 0 1 6 20 A t least once a week, doctors fl y out of the Augusta State Airport and head north to Aroostook County's Northern Maine Regional Airport in Presque Isle. ey spend the day treating patients in Caribou or Presque Isle, providing specialized care that otherwise would have required their patients to drive two-and-a-half hours to Bangor, fi ve hours to Portland or seven hours to Boston. "We've been doing that for 25 years or more," says William Perry, president of Maine Instrument Flight, the com- pany founded 70 years ago by his father to provide fl ight training at the Augusta State Airport. "So we're able to help the people of Aroostook County have access to the doctors they need that otherwise they might not have had." e Federal Aviation Administration, through grants funded by the Airport Improvement Program, plays a signifi cant but often overlooked role in supporting those chartered medical fl ights and all the other essential services provided by Maine's 35 public-use airports. PRESEN T ING SP ONSOR FOLLOW US @MBEVENTS #MBFast16 Award winners revealed live on December 8 Who Are the Top 3? Join us on December 8 as we reveal live the 2016 Fastest Growing Companies at this year's awards ceremony. Help us celebrate the top three dynamic and successful Maine companies who have exhibited tremendous growth over the previous three years. Register to attend at: mainebiz.biz/Fast16 Jeff Pieske, director of maintenance for Maine Instrument Flight, says experienced aviation mechanics, as well as trained pilots, are in strong demand at Maine airports. P H O T O / JA M E S M C C A R T H Y T R A N S P O R TAT I O N / I N F R A S T R U C T U R E F O C U S How do airports serve the public? Emergency preparedness and response ¡ Medical fl ights ¡ Law enforcement, national security, border security ¡ Emergency response ¡ Aerial fi refi ghting support ¡ Disaster relief ¡ Search and rescue Critical community access ¡ Access to remote areas such as islands ¡ Air taxi/charter services ¡ Essential scheduled air service cargo Other aviation specific functions ¡ Self-piloted business fl ights ¡ Corporate ¡ Flight instruction ¡ Personal fl ying ¡ Charter passenger services ¡ Aircraft maintenance and manufacturing ¡ Aircraft storage ¡ Aerospace engineering research Commercial, industrial and economic activities ¡ Agricultural support ¡ Aerial surveying and observation ¡ Oil and mineral exploration/survey ¡ Utility/pipeline control/inspection ¡ Business executive fl ight service ¡ Manufacturing and distribution ¡ Express delivery service ¡ Air cargo Destination and special events ¡ Tourism and access to special events ¡ Intermodal connections (i.e., rail and shipping) ¡ Special aeronautical events, such as sky-diving and air shows S O U R C E : Federal Aviation Administration FAA INVESTS $26M IN AVIATION GATEWAYS Airports deliver $3B economic boost to state economy B y J a m e s M c C a r t h y