A public authority recently formed to operate Syracuse Hancock Airport is wasting no time tackling its top priority — security costs that city officials say are making it hard to attract more airlines to Syracuse and are helping to keep ticket prices high.
The Syracuse Regional Airport Authority, at its second meeting since its creation this summer by the state Legislature, voted 10-0 Friday to approve an agreement with the city that will give the authority the exclusive right to provide security personnel for the airport.
If the agreement is approved by the Syracuse Common Council and the Federal Aviation Administration, the authority will hire a private security firm rather than relying solely on city police, said William Fisher, the authority’s chairman.
The city-owned airport spends more than $4 million a year on security — twice, city officials say, what comparable Upstate airports pay. The reason? The city uses city police officers to patrol Hancock, while airports in Albany, Buffalo and Rochester use mostly private security guards who are paid less.
Adding to the cost is the city’s long-held practice of using officers on overtime shifts. Of the $4.1 million the city spent on airport security in the fiscal year that ended June 30, $3.4 million was for police overtime pay.
Fisher said the authority hopes to slash security costs in half. The authority will keep at least four city police officers at the airport at all times, he said.
Airlines foot the bill for security costs because they are included in the landing fees they pay to the city. By lowering the security costs, the airport could lower landing fees, making Hancock a more attractive place for airlines — especially discount airlines, Fisher said.
“Airlines go where costs are lower,” he said. “This is just about the first thing that low-cost carriers want to know — the cost per passenger.”
Hancock has been plagued by high air fares for years. Economic development officials have complained that the high cost of flying raises the cost of doing business here and makes it harder to attract new employers.
City officials say the only way to bring fares down is to attract more airlines to boost competition. City Aviation Commissioner Chris Reale said fares at Hancock are competitive with those at other Upstate airports in cases where there is more than one airline flying to the same destination, especially if one is a discount carrier. But fares at Hancock are much higher than those at other airports in routes where only one airline is flying, she said.
Delta Air Lines charges $436 for a one-way flight from Syracuse to Atlanta, a major travel hub and business destination. It charges $206 to fly to Atlanta from Rochester, where Delta must compete with AirTran Airways.
One of the major reasons the city asked the state to create a regional airport authority to take over Hancock’s operation is to avoid a potential legal battle — or at least put itself in a stronger position for such a battle — with the Syracuse Police Benevolent Association. The union contended that the city has no legal right to hire private security firms or even police officers from other departments to provide security at Hancock. The PBA has said the city’s longtime practice of using police gave them a right to those jobs.
Fisher said the state legislation that created the authority specifically gives the authority the right to provide security.
On Friday, police union President Jeff Piedmonte acknowledged that once the authority is fully in control of the airport’s operations, it could hire a private firm for at least some security. However, until the authority has reached an agreement with the city giving it that control, the union believes that police officers, though not necessarily city police officers, must be used, he said.
Piedmonte questioned the quality of a private firm’s work. Unlike police officers, private security guards cannot stop cars, issue tickets or make arrests, he said. And with only four police officers stationed at the airport — two at security checkpoints within the passenger terminal — an officer may not be immediately available to assist a private guard, he said.
“I’m concerned with security being lessened at the airport while every other airport across the country is increasing security,” he said.
Fisher said the authority plans to negotiate an agreement with the city to take over operation of the airport. But it will take time and it will have to be approved by the FAA, he said. Rather than wait, the authority and officials of Mayor Stephanie Miner’s administration decided to go forward quickly with an agreement on security personnel, he said.
Common Councilor Pat Hogan, chairman of the council’s Airport Committee, said he will vote to approve the agreement, which will go before the full council on Oct. 24.
“One of the biggest obstacles to bringing down the cost of a ticket is bringing down the security costs,” he said. “The situation is not tenable.”
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