Oct. 26—Changes are coming for Crossville Memorial Airport's operator Azure Flight Support.

The company is entering the charter flight business and bringing jet maintenance to Crossville.

"I was the CEO of an air charter company for 35 years," Allen Howell, partner and CEO of Azure Flight Support, told the Crossville City Council during its Oct. 3 work session.

After the charter business was split from Azure five years ago, the company was prohibited from entering charter flight operations. They focused on the fixed-base operator business, which brought them to Crossville in 2019.

"Our non-compete expired at the end of August, and we could get back into the charter business. That's what we intend to do," Howell said.

The Federal Aviation Administration regulates charter flight services, and it can take several years to be licensed.

Howell said Azure has been in discussion with a company from East Tennessee to purchase a charter operation currently based in New Hampshire.

"We're moving the charter operation out of Portsmouth, NH," Howell said. "It comes with a fully certified repair station for turbine and jet maintenance."

The maintenance operation will come to Crossville. Azure is talking with Johnny Presley, who currently rents a large hangar at the airport, to sublease much of that space, which is currently only housing a plane.

The current maintenance operation includes five employees who can work on piston and small general aviation airplanes.

"This would upgrade that," Howell said. "It would be the maintenance base for the initial operation of jets based in Greeneville, TN, and Smyrna, TN."

The charter operation would also offer an opportunity for local jet owners to have their planes used for charters.

Howell said the charter purchase includes 10- and 12-passenger turboprop aircraft.

"In my past, we operated a lot of those airplanes out of Tennessee on government contracts and regional airline service," he said. "From that point, as we start letting the jet owners know we are in business — the model we operate under is, if you own a jet, we'll manage it for you. If you don't have a full-time use for it, we'll charter it out when you're not using it. It's a good business model."

Operating a charter business requires a focus on regulations. As Howell considered how the charter business would impact Azure's other business, he said, "We can't be all things and do all things good."

That led Howell to look at the flight training offered at Crossville and other airports where Azure operates.

The contract with the city does not require Azure to offer flight training, though it's been a popular service, particularly as the school system launched a pilot training operation for students.

However, city approval is necessary if Azure wants to outsource or assign specific services, such as flight training.

Howell reached out to the owner of Tennessee Flight Training, which has a flight school based at Nashville's airport and another Middle Tennessee location. The company is buying the right to offer flight training at Azure locations in Crossville, Shelbyville and Cleveland.

The council approved the assignment of flight training to Tennessee Flight Training during the consent agenda of the Oct. 10 regular meeting. During public comments, a resident of the city questioned if the flight training or maintenance would cause an increase in noise disturbance for city residents.

City Manager Greg Wood told the council the only difference between the current flight training and the new provider would be the capacity for more advanced training.

"That will get people in the pipeline for pilots for commercial," Wood said during the audit committee that precedes the monthly meeting.

In other business, the council approved the following:

—Extension of waterline to serve a 16-unit housing development off County Garage Rd., with a financial guarantee of $24,436.61

—Participation in matching grant program to request reimbursement up to $5,000 for security cameras recently installed at the Palace Theatre

—Temporary road closures to provide for handicap parking near Cumberland County Memorial Park on Rector Ave and E. Fourth St. Nov. 11 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. for the annual Veterans Day ceremony

—Accept $26,930 Tennessee Department of Safety grant to reimburse overtime and provide programs related to alcohol enforcement and programs designed to combat driving under the influence

—Two-year contract extension for continued service from Water Leak Relief, LLC, which provides water leak protection for the city's water customers. The new contract expires Jan. 31, 2026.

Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.