When officials at Meadows Field Airport (BFL) in Bakersfield, CA, started planning to replace the facility's aging main runway, they expected a price tag of around $10 million. But the initial tally approached $70 million, prompting a bad case of sticker shock.
Sometimes, the phrase "perfect storm" refers to a rare combination of events that leads to disaster. Other times, it describes similarly unusual circumstances that create an amazing outcome. Surprisingly, a recent runway safety area project at Monterey Regional Airport (MRY) met both definitions at various points.
Denver International Airport (DEN) has a new tool at its disposal for managing winter operations: in-pavement sensors that help predict when ice will form on runway and other airfield surfaces. The system includes five clusters of sensors embedded in Runway 17L-35R, one of DEN's four north/south runways, and three more clusters in adjacent high-speed taxiways. The in-pavement sensors were installed as part of a $46.5 million runway resurfacing project.
Kodiak Benny Benson State Airport (ADQ) faced a quandary when devising plans to meet the federal mandate for runway safety areas: There simply wasn't enough land at the island-bound Alaskan facility to add them. So planners got creative and built into the ocean. Contractors moved an estimated 1.1 million tons of rock to fill a portion of the Gulf of Alaska in order to create enough surface area for an engineered material arresting system (EMAS) on one runway and to lengthen another runway to allow for an EMAS bed on its other end.
Research that may lead to more widespread use of 'green' runway pavement materials is underway at the FAA National Airport Pavement & Materials Research Center, in Egg Harbor Township, NJ. Engineers at the new facility use a custom-designed heavy vehicle simulator to test asphalt and other pavement materials at high tire pressures and temperatures.
How does an airport with just one runway maintain operations while rehabilitating that runway' After nine months of intense and highly coordinated work on Runway 18-36, Myrtle Beach International (MYR) has some answers.
Many airport operators feel they have limited options when it comes to airfield pavements. As vital concrete and asphalt assets age and deteriorate, they repair areas as needed and wait for the field's pavement condition index to dictate a replacement project. When that day comes and goes, a new version of the same cycle begins again.
It's often a challenge to secure partial funding for major projects, but Gainesville Regional Airport (GNV) in Florida received full funding from the state for its recent $2.8 million runway renovation. Typically, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will pay up to 50% of construction expenses at state airports. However, it pays up to 100% of the cost for special demonstration projects.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) recently completed the total reconstruction of Runway 16C-34C, giving new life to the oldest of its three runways. And what a life it will be. The 9,426-foot runway that was originally built in 1969 is now projected to have another 40-year lifecycle.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) recently completed two massive projects to relight and remark its airfield. Almost all of the work occurred simultaneously, from March 2014 to July 2015. Together, the improvements cost the airport about $34 million - with no outside funding.
Justin Lobb, manager at Immokalee Regional (IMM) in Florida, doesn't mince words when he recalls how badly the airport's north-south runway needed a major makeover: "The pavements showed signs of water intrusion and longitudinal cracking. The maze of drainage ditches between the runway and Taxiway B also presented maintenance challenges. Irregular grading had resulted in unsafe ponding and wildlife attraction conditions, and the area was accessible for maintenance only during the dry season."
Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is nearly halfway through an ambitious three-year project to bring all four runways at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) into compliance with FAA runway safety area requirements.
