By Gary R. Ness
Mark Holzer, Aviation Planner for the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission is retiring from the state position he held for over 30 years. He will be venturing into a second career path with the Bismarck Airports District Office (FAA-ADO) on Monday, July 19th. He is looking forward to new challenges in GIS related planning, ALP and Master Plan reviews.
Holzer’s career at the ND Aero Commission, spanned many changes in the aviation industry. He has preformed and processed more than 1,800 FAA 5010 inspections. In a way, Holzer has been the assistant manager of the 84 general aviation airports across the state, monitoring the efforts and development of all those facilities with the passion of a big uncle. (Holzer Pictured)
When asked about the most important factor during his tenure with the Commission, Holzer replied, “The General Aviation Entitlement Program – it provided the funding to revitalized all the GA airports in North Dakota.”
Number 2 on his list is the coordination efforts with the air carrier airport management and the business communities in air service marketing. Holzer points out that the FLY ND program, developed with all four major cities and Northwest Airlines to provide a business pricing model, proved so feasible and profitable to NWA that it became a national model in the late 90’s. Only 9-11 derailed that program.
Holzer co-authored the development of three Small Community Air Service Grants for eligible Essential Air Service communities, which in turn created more awareness of the air service available to those communities. A proven benefit was that those grants increased passenger load factors at all three community airports.
Planning, design and development, and the funding of passenger terminals at the eight air carrier airports in North Dakota, was number 3 on Holzer’s list. Since 1985 all eight airports have built or are in the process of building new terminals for their communities’ travelers. Records indicate that over Marks career, $321 million dollars of federal funding has found its way to ND airports since 1980. That amount of money does require planning!
The number one issue, maintaining an airport system that can serve the needs of the state, is wide and varied, from a grass strip in McVille to the air carrier state leader at Fargo. The planning part of the Commission also includes coordination and management of a state wide AWOS program that has provided 20 new systems enhancing business aviation and emergency access across the state; doubling the airport instrument approaches in ND since 2000 and supervising the formulation of a Medi-Port Helicopter Plan, a partnership with medical services personnel which provided an ambulance intercept plan for all EMT services in rural ND.
A person has to be flexible and ready to be the answer man for just about everything in the aviation business, which for Holzer has included several airport system plans, non-totaled air service plans, a Mirada of master plans and ALP’s, Airport Crisis Communication Plans, directories, aeronautical charts, executive summaries, impact studies, FBO and pilot promotional efforts. Along with advising other state and federal personnel on the importance of aviation to the state it’s a wonder he still had time for his other passion ~ fishing!
The state will definitely wish Mark, his wife Georgiana, and three teenage sons, Jason, Justin and Jamie the best in the future.
