Maggie Ragon Appointed to Aviation Board

For Immediate Release: September 25, 2019
Contact: Andrew Crider, 804-774-4635, andrew.crider@doav.virginia.gov

Richmond—Gov. Ralph Northam appointed Maggie A. Ragon to the Virginia Aviation Board recently. Ragon will represent Virginia Aviation Region 5, which includes Blackstone, Brookneal-Campbell County, Crewe Municipal, Danville Regional, Dinwiddie County, Falwell, Farmville Regional, Lynchburg Regional, New London, Smith Mountain Lake and William M. Tuck airports.

“I’m excited to be appointed to the board,” Ragon said. “As everyone does, I’ve fallen in love with the [aviation] business.”

Ragon was the first woman to serve on the Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport Commission where she has represented the City of Staunton for 10 years. Ragon also serves as Staunton’s Commissioner of Revenue where she was first elected in 2006.

In the past year, Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport Commission worked to attract airline service to the airport. The airline service by SkyWest has helped the airport grow passenger traffic by 150% in 2018 and 100% in the first six months of 2019.

Ragon said that she is excited about the economic opportunity in aviation. “I look at it as a tool of economic development, and I will approach my work on the Board from that perspective.”

Ragon earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration in marketing from JMU and a master’s degree in business administration at Middle Tennessee State University. She was appointed to the JMU Board of Visitors in June of last year.

Ragon replaces Johnny Mazza, who retired from the board in August. The next meeting of the Virginia Aviation Board is scheduled for November 21 in Northern Virginia.

The Virginia Department of Aviation's Mission is to: Develop an advanced aviation system that is safe, secure, and fosters economic development; Build an appreciation by the public for the importance of aviation and to inspire the next generation of aviation professionals; and Provide safe and highly efficient flight services for the Commonwealth's leadership and state agencies.