Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) has experienced an increase in unhoused people seeking shelter within its facilities. With a portion of that population suffering from mental health issues, there have been assaults to passengers and airport employees as well as security breaches or other incidents that cause facility shutdowns or flight delays.
The new terminal project at Des Moines International Airport (DSM) is a once-in-a-generation undertaking nearly a decade in the making. But it's also expected to be an overnight success'that is, in terms of closing the existing terminal one day and starting operations in the new one the next.
Gathering some of the world's busiest executives in the picturesque Idaho setting makes it easier for them to connect'and also creates spectacular traffic management challenges in the air and on the ramp at SUN. On a typical day, the small airport averages about 70 arrivals and departures, a mix of general aviation flights and commercial service. But traffic surges dramatically during the annual Sun Valley Conference.
Shortly after midnight on the first Monday in March, police officers on the newly formed SRAA Police Department began patrolling the Upstate New York airport grounds for the first time. They replaced officers from the Syracuse Police Department who had worked at the airport both directly and on a contract basis through a third-party security company for most of SYR's existence.
Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) is taking a new industry-leading step by piloting a new kind of testing strategy'one that doesn't involve swabbing the noses of passengers or airport workers. A lab established at the airport is testing wastewater samples collected from terminals 1 and 3 and samples from the aircraft waste collection area Triturator for a wide range of viruses such as COVID, influenza and mpox.
The recent addition of an upgraded air traffic control tower has given Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport (AZA) an inside track to welcoming more passengers while supporting a surge in aviation-related commercial development. Last August, AZA activated its John S. McCain III Air Traffic Control Tower, a nearly 200-foot-tall, $30 million addition that immediately improved airfield safety and boosted operational capacity at the expanding reliever airport.
Creating a better workspace was the driving force in early 2020 when executives at Gerald R. Ford International Airport (GRR) committed to building a new operations center. In addition to housing everyday operations functions and equipment, the $8.5 million building includes an upgraded emergency operations center for the Grand Rapids, MI, airport.
This summer, Rogue Valley International'Medford Airport (MFR) in southwestern Oregon completed the installation of an innovative stormwater detention and drainage solution that mimics nature to wick and clean rainwater before returning it to the ground and nearby waterways.
A $21.7 million geothermal heating and cooling system currently being installed at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport (SDF) is the first of its magnitude at a U.S. airport. The project is designed to reduce the Kentucky airport's energy costs for natural gas and electricity by roughly $400,000 annually. It also should reduce SDF's carbon footprint by about 80%.
Winter weather in central Maine has changed significantly over the last few decades, prompting Millinocket Municipal Airport (MLT) to update its snow removal equipment to meet the new airfield maintenance challenges.
A previous investment in an automated aircraft identification and billing system is paying new dividends at Dallas Love Field (DAL). The technology, PlanePass by Vector Airport Systems, was initially installed in 2016 to detect and bill Customs operations. DAL executives expanded its use in January 2019 to cover all general aviation and nonsignatory commercial operations.
