WORTHINGTON —
The Ashland Regional Airport expected to undergo nearly $3 million in upgrades during the next several years.
The improvements are aimed at achieving the Federal Aviation Administration’s B-2 standard, which will help the airport to retain its private and corporate jet traffic.
On Wednesday, Gov. Steve Beshear announced an $843,226 FAA grant for the airport, which is part of an overall $2 million in grant funds awarded by the agency for nine Kentucky airports.
Nearby Big Sandy Regional Airport in Prestonsburg and the Morehead-Rowan County Clyde A. Thompson Regional Airport are slated to receive $300,000 and $50,850, respectively.
David Mansfield, chairman of the board of directors for the Ashland Regional Airport, said the grant will pay for acquisition of land to relocate the airport’s taxiway. The taxiway and runway are too close together, he said. “To meet a B-2 standard, our taxiway has to be located 260 feet apart from the runway from center line to center line,” he said. “Right now, we miss that by about 40 feet.”
Mansfield said the grant will pay for design work and property needed to relocate the taxiway. “There is no construction involved in this,” he said. “We’re hoping in the next two years that gets done.”
Construction of the new taxiway is expected to cost around $1.3 million, he said. In addition, the airport needs a new asphalt overlay for the mile-long runway. That project is expected to cost about $1.6 million.
Mansfield said it is airport officials’ hope the resurfacing can be done next year. “It probably hasn’t been paved in 15 years,” he said.
The airport, according to Mansfield, is an important tool for regional economic development, he said. “One of the first things companies look for if they are going to relocate somewhere is at the type of air service that is available,” said Mansfield. “We’re in a convenient location.”
The airport sees a lot of commercial traffic — up to 20 takeoffs and landings a day — during the week. Corporate jets for companies, including local department stores, Marathon and Sunoco, use the airport frequently, Mansfield said.
“You would be surprised about the corporate jet traffic that comes in here. It all supports the local economy,” he said.
The governors of Ohio and Kentucky are also frequent fliers at the airport, and medical flights for organ transplants and Federal Bureau of Prisons’ inmate transport are common.
On the weekends, the airport is primarily used by recreational pilots for general aviation, he said.
Mansfield said infrastructure upgrades at the airport will help it to remain viable into the future. Eventually, he and other members of the board envision some other “more visible ways” to expand the airport, such as a restaurant. “We would like the airport to be self-sufficient,” he said.
The airport is funded primarily through federal and state grants in addition to state and local funding.
CARRIE STAMBAUGH can be reached at cstambaugh@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2653.
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