Aviation View | Volume 2, Issue 1

78 AVIATION VIEW VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1 they’ve become commonplace. That change happened so quickly and it has improved access to more reliable instrument approaches across the country.” These improvements help make aviation better and safer. But now airports have to predict what changes they need to complete, such as moving to alternative fuels. Holt elaborates, “In regard to alternative fuels at the airport, what will the fuel farm look like? Electric aircraft, do we have the power grid to accommodate them? And where can we accommodate them? We’re seeing these questions arising on the horizon. Making changes of this scale can take planning for over ten years, but truthfully we’ll see these advancements in the shorter timeframe. This is exciting and aviation relevant.” Regional airports like VTMEA are economic tools for communities, and they serve as the front- facing welcome mat to all industries travelling through the area. These airports play a vital role in promoting and maintaining healthy economic development. For the next three to five years, VTMEA is focused on projects like a ramp PREFERRED VENDORS/ PARTNERS n Parrish & Partners, LLC parrishandpartners.com n Eden and Associates www.edenandassociates.com expansion at the airport, as well as the addition of more hangar space. Holt sums it up well, explaining, “As the community and university grows we want to ensure our airport keeps pace with the surrounding developments. This is especially true due to our locality; the growth of Virginia Tech is very closely tied to the community. The airport needs to be a large part of that conversation and growth.”