Sooner or later, most single-runway airports have to bite the bullet and shut down to rehab their airstrip. For Jackson Hole Airport (JAC), that time came this spring. When the Wyoming airfield reopened in late June, it had a reconstructed runway designed to last for many decades and improvements in and around the terminal, to boot.
Airport operators generally have the misconception that if the lights are on, all is well. Tests, however, show that nothing could be further from the truth. The human eye is simply unable to detect reductions in the photometric performance of working fixtures, and this can potentially have serious safety implications.
Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport (LGA) was built in the 1960s when both aircraft and air passenger numbers were much smaller. As the airport entered its sixth decade with passenger counts surging to 15 million and aircraft reaching record size, one of its biggest challenges was space constraints for aircraft taxiing to and from the gates.
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.
When Ben Harrison became director at Cullman Regional Airport-Folsom Field (CMD) one decade ago, there were several projects that needed his attention. Originally constructed in 1958, the north/south runway had been improved throughout the years, but there were limited records about the work.
Hosting managed bees on or near airport land can help bring awareness to the importance of pollinators and highlight an airport's commitment to supporting local agriculture. On a very literal basis, airport beekeeping is a grass roots initiative that promotes healthy communities from the inside out.
A $5.6 million project to upgrade fuel farm infrastructure at Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport (ICT) in Kansas was completed this summer without any disruption to operations. The project included phased repairs and upgrades to six 25,000-gallon underground tanks that store jet fuel as well as other system improvements.
Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) has embarked on an initiative to calibrate and quantify the impacts of sustainable design and construction throughout its facilities. Using a formalized framework for assessing sustainability, resiliency and equity in civil infrastructure, PHL is contributing to a sea change in the way infrastructure is understood by the people who understand it best.
Previously known as Pope Air Force Base, POB is part of the Fort Bragg garrison. Its lead Air Force tenant unit is the 43rd Air Mobility Operations Group, which is responsible for rapid strategic deployment of forces assigned to the Joint Special Operations Command and the U.S. Army's XVIII Airborne Corps and 82nd Airborne Division.
A few short years ago, Chris Hastert had heard about PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) but didn't know much about them. By March 2019, he was fully embroiled in the topic. That's when the California Water Board began sending letters to all commercial airports in the state as part of its larger initiative about PFAS contamination in groundwater.
