By Benjamin Rothstein

DOVER — After a decade, the Delaware Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Defense have signed a joint use agreement for Dover Air Force Base, setting up the area for 50 years of air business with cargo and private flights.

The contract was signed Thursday at the Civil Air Terminal and celebrated by state transportation secretary Nicole Majeski; Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, both D-Del.; and several other local dignitaries.

Ms. Majeski shined a spotlight on state Division of Transportation Resiliency and Sustainability director Stephanie Johnson, who has been spearheading the partnership. Previous agreements lasted just 20 years, not long enough for air-related companies to establish themselves with Dover as their hub, Ms. Majeski noted.

Ms. Johnson spoke on the journey it took to reach Thursday’s signing.

“I had been in my position at Planning for a year, and I felt like I had everything good and settled. I went to Drew (Boyce, DelDOT’s director of planning at the time), and I said, ‘Hey, I need a challenge. Give me something,’” she said. “And he looked at me and said, ‘I got something for you.’ Little did I know how much of a challenge it really was going to be.”

Ms. Johnson also highlighted some other benefits of the agreement to the Daily State News, like greatly increasing the allowed flight volume and eliminating the previous requirement of 72 hours’ notice before any kind of commercial service.

The Civil Air Terminal will also get its own three-letter airport designation, but that has not been decided yet. Passenger flights are not planned.

Representatives of the military side of the partnership were celebrating, as well.

“I told folks when I first got here, I heard about this mythical joint use agreement in the works,” said 436th Airlift Wing commander Col. William C. McDonald, who arrived in Dover in July 2023. “Thank you all for your hard work to get this across the finish line because it means so much to the base and the community.”

Sens. Carper and Coons agreed.

“And that’s what’s going to flow from this — all kinds of jobs and economic opportunity,” Sen. Carper said. “There’s nothing, nothing, that we can do for people that gives me greater satisfaction. I think I speak for (all the congressional delegation) in making sure that (the people of Dover) have the opportunity to feed themselves, feed their families, be responsible citizens.”

Sen. Coons added, “This is an incredible asset, having literally paved the way with a brand-new, state-of-the-art runway that’s got a 50-year serviceable life, having laid the foundation with a workforce that comes to Dover to serve, whether active duty or Reserve, and then sees how wonderful Dover is as a community, how supportive Kent County is, what a great place Delaware is.”

Ms. Majeski and Col. McDonald signed the agreement in front of two biplanes at the terminal at 2199 Horsepond Road.