New flight line in May for Desert Aire Airport
Project Manager Cliff Naser, left, and pilot and volunteer worker Chuck Fuller stand about where the center of the new flight line will be.
The Desert Aire Airport will be able to handle larger planes after construction of the new flight line is completed. This World War II A-26 Invader was able to do only a fly-over in 2013 at the annual Desert Aire Fly-in and Breakfast.
DESERT AIRE - The Desert Aire Airport may have its new flight line in time for the annual Desert Aire Fly-in and Breakfast on Father's Day weekend.
"We'll be getting a new runway in May," Project Manager Cliff Naser said Friday.
That's news many people wondered if they'd ever hear. The Desert Aire Airport Board of Commissioners was still scrambling late last year to gather needed funding.
The board needed to gather local money as a match to encourage major funding organizations to help. The commissioners didn't quite make their goal, but the funding sources came through.
Major funding for this project is provided by four grants totaling $507,495. Two are from WSDOT/Aviation and two are from the Strategic Infrastructure Project (SIP) program, which is administered by the Grant County Economic Development Council.
"A condition of receiving these SIP grants is that we will solicit the balance of the required funding from our local community," said Naser, who recently served on the board.
The source of the state money is taxes on aviation fuel. The source of the SIP money is a small portion of sales taxes collected by the state which is dedicated for strategic infrastructure projects.
This funding is enough for the commissioners to complete the third phase of the three-phase project. They opened flight line bids on Dec. 18. They will award the contract to low bidder Granite Construction within two weeks.
"We are happy to have Granite doing the work," Naser said. "They are a major national contractor and have all the latest equipment. They constructed our new south taxiway in 2008 and did an excellent job."
The paving will be done in May. The end result will be a 60-foot wide runway, compared to 36 feet now. The center line will be 16 feet south of the current center line.
Granite will remove the old asphalt, chew it up and mix it with new gravel. It will build a sub-base, then lay a five-inch rock base of the mixed materials on top. Finally it will lay two and a half inches of asphalt over the rock base.
"The sub-base and base will support the weight of the planes," Naser said.
According to Naser, the FAA standard for small airport flight lines is 60 feet of width. It is the minimum recommended (and sometimes required) by many insurers of business aircraft.
The manufacturer of MedStar's Pilatus air ambulance, which serves the Desert Aire/Mattawa community, recommends a 60-foot wide runway.
"We're expecting an increase in business aircraft traffic," Naser said. "The area is growing economically, and we need to grow with it."
The reason for the runway center-line shift 16 feet to the south is the FAA runway/taxiway separation distance standard of 150' from the taxiways.
The commissioners will still need about $30,000 to fund some amenities after the paving - shoulder gravel, safety area gravel, runway striping, hydro-seeding. They will be soliciting funds for these items over the next five months.
"Some of that may be done by volunteers," Naser said. "We may do the striping ourselves."
Area residents who have not yet contributed to this important community facility may still do so. They may contact any of the pilot volunteers: Dick Skogerson or Karl Gruber, Cliff Naser (541-379-9587), or Ken Broda of Tiddaly Diddaly's at 661-305-4734.
"The Desert Aire/Mattawa community has been enormously generous," Naser said. "We have received contributions from orchard and vineyard owners, local businesses and contractors, civic groups, and many, many individuals.
"The support of the community has made it possible for us to receive the grant money and has provided the additional funding necessary for us to award this paving contract."
In addition to the financial support, the commissioners have Friends of the Airport volunteers and the Desert Aire Owners Association, which are contributing labor and equipment to this project valued at approximately $35,000.
Grant County Airport District No. 1 is a state municipality but is funded entirely by grants and contributions. It does not receive any tax revenues. It pays no salaries and is managed and maintained by unpaid volunteers.
The Desert Aire airport is designated by Grant County as a necessary public-use facility. All contributions to GCAD No.1 are tax-deductible.
"Our airport is important to community businesses, agriculture, recreation, dam and fish hatchery support and construction and for medical air ambulance services," Naser said.