The Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce held its March General Membership Luncheon on Wednesday, March 19, at the Black Diamond Lodge in Fruitland, Maryland. The luncheon was sponsored by Landmark Insurance.
The featured speaker was Mr. Eric Morgan, President and Chief Executive Officer of Piedmont Airlines, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Airlines.
Mr. Morgan mentioned, “Piedmont and its previous iterations, dating back to its founder, Richard Henson, will celebrate one hundred years of service to the region in 2032.”
The history of the airline began in 1932 with Henson Flying Service, based in Hagerstown, Maryland. It later became Piedmont Regional Airline, which was contracted by North Carolina-based Piedmont Airlines at that time. Commercial service from Salisbury, Maryland, where Piedmont’s headquarters is located, began in 1975. Today, Piedmont employs more than eleven thousand people and serves a network of sixty destinations.
Morgan spoke about current Piedmont operations, including the fact that daily fights total four hundred; the airline has six maintenance bases across its fleet and is the best-performing airline in the American Airlines system.
Morgan highlighted several challenges facing the industry, particularly the recruitment of employees. “We try to hire local, train local, and retain local talent for Piedmont,” he explained to the audience.
He also noted that the shortage of certified Air Traffic Controllers and outdated technologies have caused disruptions across all commercial air carriers. The pandemic severely impacted air travel, nearly bringing the industry to a standstill. At the peak of the COVID outbreak, we had to put eighty of our one-hundred-and-fifteen aircraft into storage in the Arizona desert. However, as the pandemic eased in 2023 and air travel began to recover, Morgan referred to the passenger shift in travel patterns as “revenge travel.”
“Passenger demand has surged, prompting airlines to quickly revive their fleets and enhance airport infrastructures to accommodate this increase,” Morgan stated. “The collaborative efforts between the FAA and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore to establish an Aircraft Maintenance Training (AMT) program will be beneficial in the long run, as it will produce new FAA-certified airplane mechanics to help alleviate the national shortage.
In conclusion, CEO Morgan emphasized the career opportunities available at Piedmont Airlines. Positions in finance, communications, ground operations, safety, flight management, and engineering are all potential pathways in the expanding aviation industry with Piedmont.”
Join the SACC om Thursday, April 10 at 4:00 for Business After Hours hosted by Karen Davis – State Farm Insurance.
