When the main runway at Alaska's Yakutat Airport (YAK) experienced damage from harsh hydrogeological conditions, the state's Department of Transportation and Public Facilities tread carefully when crafting a solution. As owner and operator of the airport, the department knows that any project in the lowlands area around the Gulf of Alaska includes extra hurdles-specifically weather and logistics.
To continue supporting high levels of general aviation and military activity, Troy Municipal Airport at N. Kenneth Campbell Field (TOI) completed a bevy of requisite steps to begin the extension of its primary runway. Permits and land were acquired, the site was prepped and new pavement was installed.
It's no accident that newspapers don't let newsmakers write the news. There are issues of research, time, credibility, balance and ultimately publication readership. The same shouldbe said for credible industry and business-to-business publications
It was early July 2014, when I received word that a commercial aircraft carrying more than 140 passengers experienced a close encounter with a UAS (unmanned aircraft system) on final approach to our airport. While I was already plugged in to the UAS issues that were growing around the country, this hit home and got my full attention.
In early 2014, the city of Dallas and Dallas Love Field (DAL) were in a unique and ultimately timely position from operational and funding perspectives alike. The expiration of the Wright Amendment in October 2014 allowed air carriers to modify flight routes out of DAL, thereby increasing air traffic and changing the aircraft types needed to handle traffic. In addition, the upcoming 2017 expiration of the letter of intent associated with the long-running Love Field Modernization Program will make federal discretionary and entitlement dollars available for airfield-related projects that had been deferred because of the modernization program.
Last winter was particularly rough on Washington, D.C., and its airports. Winter Storm Jonas, or "Snowzilla" as local media dubbed it, dumped 29.3 inches of snow on Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)-the largest amount from an individual storm in the airport's 70-plus-year history. The storm began midday on Friday, Jan. 22, and raged for 36 grueling hours.
Meeting annual training requirements for aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) personnel can be particularly challenging at smaller airports with small staffs, where firefighters often perform airfield maintenance in addition to their primary ARFF and operational duties.
Airfield maintenance can be tough at any location, but few places in North America present more challenges than northern Alaska. Keeping runway and taxiway lights working at the remote airfields that dot the state can be extremely challenging, and workers who undertake the job often work in downright punishing conditions.
Once the exclusive domain of tech geeks and ultra-serious computer gamers, online forums are now mainstream information sources for many people. Airport operators and personnel, in fact, have multiple industry-specific sites at their disposal.
Charlotte Douglas International (CLT) has invested heavily in its airfield maintenance program over the past several years. From airfield markings and lighting to snow removal, landscape operations and wildlife management, the North Carolina airport has committed time and resources to its comprehensive effort.
When you hear the phrase "bright lights, big city," Las Vegas may be one of the first places that comes to mind. Effective light management, however, is an exacting science that takes into account many variables such as lumens, energy usage, lamp longevity and even light pollution. All of the above and more came into play when Henderson Executive Airport (HND), located in the very shadow of Vegas' world-famous "strip", expanded its airfield ramp area and installed new lighting during a four-month, $4 million project last fall.
There's no easy way-or good time-to shut down an airport for three weeks, especially a regional hub that serves as a major tourism gateway. But officials at Redmond Municipal Airport (RDM) pulled it off with nary a hitch during a recent $18.5 million runway reconstruction project.
Some say it takes a village to raise a child. Along the same lines, it took an airport, a product manufacturer and a delivery service giant to decrease the environmental impact of aircraft deicing operations at the busiest cargo airport in the United States.
With more than 16 million annual enplanements, Boston Logan International Airport (BOS) is the undisputed grande dame of Massachusetts. What many people don't know, however, is that during summer, the state's second-largest airport rivals BOS' flight operations due to its own volume of general aviation traffic.
