What You Need to Know for 2021 Thanksgiving Travel

What You Need to Know for 2021 Thanksgiving Travel

A year ago, many of us weren’t traveling for Thanksgiving. COVID-19 cases were still rising, and the vaccine was not available yet. Nevertheless, the travel and leisure industry is still bouncing back, and AAA reports the rebound in air travel alone will be even more significant, up to 80% over 2020.

This year for Thanksgiving, more people are traveling, and if you’re flying, you can expect crowded planes and higher ticket prices. The days of traveling on near-empty planes are gone. As of last week, Thanksgiving flight bookings are 78% higher than last year and 3.2% higher than in 2019.

AAA is predicting that 53 million people will travel by either air, road, or rails this Thanksgiving. In addition, AAA expects the travel volume to rise within 5% of 2019 levels.

Thanksgiving travel kicked off Monday, November 15, and runs through Monday, November 30. The Saturday and Sunday after the Thanksgiving holiday are typically the busiest travel days.

If you are traveling soon, you can do a few things to ensure a smooth trip.

TSA PRECHECK

TSA is urging anyone flying to enroll in PreCheck. Not only does it get you through the checkpoint faster, but it also eliminates the need for a bin (in most cases) and decreases the amount of contact you have with TSA agents. Enrolling in PreCheck is fairly easy, but it does take a few weeks.

Enrolling is a two-step process. First, you can start the application online by scheduling an appointment at an enrollment center. The appointment takes about 10 minutes. Next, your fingerprints are taken for a background check, and you have to pay $85 for a 5-year membership. Once approved, the renewal process is done online.

RESEARCH YOUR DESTINATION AND AIRLINE

COVID regulations vary by state. Before taking off, make sure you have everything you need to comply with your final destination. At CRW, masks are still mandatory inside the terminal, and all of the airlines at CRW require masks while onboard their aircraft. Keep in mind – you are also going through more than one airport while traveling. Checking those airports’ websites is a good idea to ensure you do not run into any surprises while traveling.

FLYING WITH FOOD

Are you the chef in the family? Don’t trust Cousin Eddie to deep fry the turkey? Fair enough. If you are packing up the goods for the big dinner, TSA has compiled a list of what food items can stay in your carry-on and what needs to be in your checked baggage. The simple rule TSA follows: if you can spill it, spread it, spray it, pump it, or pour it, pack it in a checked bag.Here is the complete list.

THE USUAL TIPS

During this period, guests choosing to travel will see many of the enhanced health, safety, and sanitation efforts that CRW began rolling out at the beginning of the pandemic. Those measures include:

  • Hand sanitizing stations
  • Acrylic barriers at high touch areas
  • New cleaning technology and frequency of cleaning
  • Social distancing markers

To ensure a healthy travel experience, CRW asks all guests to do their part by:

  • Wearing a face mask properly at all times
  • Washing hands frequently and using hand sanitizer
  • Maintain social distancing as much as possible
  • Use touchless options and mobile boarding passes
  • Allow ample time at the airport to help avoid crowds
  • Check with your airline for additional guidelines.

The CDC is still recommending that if you aren’t fully vaccinated, you delay travel.

As of November 8, 2021, The White House announced that vaccines would be required for international travelers coming into the United States.

As you start to return to the skies this holiday season, we hope you know that we’re doing everything we can to keep you and your family safe and healthy. For those that are not quite ready to return yet, your friends at CRW will be here when you’re ready. Happy Holidays!

 

OPERATIONS AND YEAGER POLICE APPREHEND SUBJECT ON AIRFIELD

OPERATIONS AND YEAGER POLICE APPREHEND SUBJECT ON AIRFIELD

OPERATIONS AND YEAGER POLICE APPREHEND SUBJECT ON AIRFIELD

On Wednesday morning at approximately 6 AM, Operations Specialist Jennifer Fisher noticed a subject on the airfield during her routine patrol. Following CRW protocol, Fisher challenged the subject who could not produce an airport badge. Realizing the subject was not an airport employee, Fisher immediately notified Yeager Airport Police Department.

Once the subject spotted the police officers, the subject attempted to flee but was apprehended by Yeager Airport Police.

The subject was transported to the hospital for evaluation.

CRW is thankful and proud of the response by Airport Operations and Yeager Airport Police, executing their training to ensure a safe and successful end to the incident. CRW would also like to thank the Charleston Police Department for its assistance.

Yeager Airport Police, Operations, and Charleston Police Department continue to investigate.

There is no threat to the public.

INBOUND FLIGHT MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING AT YEAGER AIRPORT

INBOUND FLIGHT MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING AT YEAGER AIRPORT

INBOUND FLIGHT MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING AT YEAGER AIRPORT

On Monday at 10:12 pm, a scheduled CRJ-200 flying from Atlanta safely landed at CRW after reporting an emergency due to pressurization issues. The flight landed safely with no passengers or crew needing or requiring medical attention.

At 10 pm, Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) notified the Operations Specialist of the incoming flight experiencing an emergency with pressurization. Additionally, fog inside the cabin was reported to the ATCT.

Before the plane landed, the West Virginia Air National Guard 130th Fire Department quickly responded to the runway per CRW’s airport emergency plan.

At 10:12, the aircraft landed safely and taxis to Gate B1, followed by several 130th engines. When the plane stopped, the 130th boarded the aircraft to check for passenger medical issues and reported the oxygen masks were deployed with a faint smell of smoke in the cabin. All 51 souls on board were evacuated and refused medical attention.

CRW thanks the 130th Fire Department, Charleston Fire Department, KCEAA, and Charleston Police Department for their quick response.

Please check with your airline for the most up-to-date information regarding flight status.

Yeager Airport takes first big step in electrifying CRW

Yeager Airport takes first big step in electrifying CRW

Here at Yeager Airport, we move fast and efficiently; we also pride ourselves on staying ahead and being forward thinkers who don’t have a box to think outside of.

Our latest project is electrifying CRW with electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, better known as eVTOL. WATCH HERE or read below for more.

“This is an opportunity for Kanawha County and West Virginia to be at the forefront of emerging technology. A lot of this stuff hasn’t been done before. We can be at the forefront of this technology while trying to achieve our vision of being the most significant economic engine of the state of West Virginia by bringing high-paying, high-tech jobs,” said Airport Director Nick Keller.

At the end of October, The Central West Virginia Regional Airport Authority Board voted to move forward with a consulting group, Thrasher. This agreement means that a team of consultants will prepare CRW and West Virginia for an eVTOL infrastructure.

“The groundwork phase has kicked off. We are doing cost estimating right now to see the financial obligation for that battery research center. We are in talks with the engineering school at Marshall with their thoughts on what this will look like, how it will function, and what sort of equipment we will need….so we can be more attractive to different funding sources,” said Thrasher Marketing Director, Heidi Handley.

For the last six weeks, Director Keller, and Thrasher Group, Marshall University, and the Robert C. Byrd Institute have been working on several eVTOL opportunities.

“That would include electrifying our airport, putting charging stations in, and looking around the state to put these landing pads for aircraft. The potential to have an aerospace manufacturing facility in the Kanawha valley and region would make these aircraft batteries. Thrasher is under contract to help us review this and help us with federal grant applications, land acquisition, and site development. The whole host of everything that relates to eVTOL” said Keller.

eVTOL aircraft are battery operated and will be a significant milestone for CRW’s zero-emission aviation industry. Board members like Ed Hill and Jim Dodtrill all approve of Director Keller’s vision of electrifying CRW.

“We see an economic opportunity that will significantly benefit this area and the state,” said Hill.

“For the state and the region because we are on the front edge of it. For example, if we do the battery research center in cooperation with Marshall, it will be the first in the world. It’s kind of like if you built it, they would come. It will be like a magnet; it will attract the eVTOL companies to West Virginia,” said Dodrill.

CRW is working hard to lock in grant funding, and depending on that, we could see work on the infrastructure being done as soon as the following year.

Yeager Airport takes first big step in electrifying CRW

YEAGER AIRPORT TAKES BIG STEP IN ELECTRIFYING CRW WITH SEVERAL EVTOL OPPORTUNITIES

YEAGER AIRPORT TAKES BIG STEP IN ELECTRIFYING CRW WITH SEVERAL EVTOL OPPORTUNITIES

On Wednesday, the Central West Virginia Regional Airport Authority approved entering into a contract with The Thrasher Group. Airport Design Consultants Inc. and Marshall University Center for Business and Economic Research will be sub-consultants. The agreement means a team of consultants will be fully engaged to prepare CRW and West Virginia for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) infrastructure.

CRW is working on multiple funding opportunities for the build-out of electric infrastructure at multiple West Virginia locations to operate eVTOL aircraft.

The contract will build on work conducted over the last six weeks where Thrasher and CRW, along with Marshall University, and the Robert C. Byrd Institute, have been working on several eVTOL opportunities, including:

  1. Establishing Air Taxi Intrastate Air Service and an eVTOL Center of Excellence
    1. The overall vision is for CRW to become a hub for future air taxi services with airline connections. The airport will serve as a center of excellence for eVTOL training and operations.
  2. Battery Research Center
    1. CRW will work with Marshall University, private companies, and others to explore opening the world’s first aerospace battery research center.
  3. Manufacturing Facility
    1. Thrasher will work with CRW to identify potential sites and conduct design work for aerospace components manufacturing facilities.
  4. Vertiports & electrification infrastructure
  5. Thrasher and sub-consultants will design eVTOL electric infrastructure, charging stations, landing pad facilities, vertiports, heliports, flight simulators, and associated support infrastructure at multiple locations
  6. CRW Airport Electrification Project
    1. This will include the design and construction of electrical infrastructure, landing pad, and aircraft charging stations.
    2. Design and construction of the aerospace economic development center, which would consist of a 10,000 square foot hangar for electric and other aircraft, terminal building for general aviation users, an innovation center, and aerospace business incubator and accelerator that will serve as a hub for the state.

 

Airport Director Nick Keller says the agreement is a significant milestone for CRW’s zero-emissions aviation industry. “This work and our partnership with the Thrasher Group will ensure the State of West Virginia is at the forefront of the emerging eVTOL industry, attracting good paying high tech aerospace jobs to the Mountain State”

Thrasher’s Director of Marketing, Heidi Handley, says this will be a transformational project. “As a West Virginia-based firm, it is exciting to be a part of an innovative project with such big implications for our state. The introduction of eVTOL truly can reshape the aerospace industry and greatly impact the economy throughout West Virginia. This will bring new, well-paying jobs – not only in the aviation space but through the construction and manufacturing industries that support eVTOL.”

Both parties will work closely to explore opportunities for how this type of technology can fit into existing and future operations at CRW with the plan of maximizing job opportunities and simplifying travel throughout the state.

About Yeager Airport (CRW): A study done by the West Virginia Aeronautics Commission says Yeager Airport is responsible for nearly 3,000 jobs and has a $225-million economic impact in the state. Yeager Airport is the largest commercial Airport in West Virginia, with service provided by American, Delta, Spirit, and United Airlines. The Airport’s Organizational Vision is: “To become the most important economic engine for the state through advances in aviation and education.” Yeager Airport, in conjunction with the West Virginia National Guard, hosts the Home Base Program. The program works to facilitate military ground, tactical, and air training in West Virginia.

For more information, please contact:

Rachel Urbanski, Public Affairs Specialist

rurbanski@yeagerairport.com

304-590-6164