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avg4t0ghFebruary 5, 2021March 3, 2021

Northeast Philadelphia Airport – Leading by experience

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Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport – New projects in the wings

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Lake Wales Municipal Airport – For business and pleasure

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Heart of Georgia Regional Airport – The center of aviation education

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Anniston Regional Airport Partnering for progress

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Fort Lauderdale, Florida and FXE – Welcome to a piece of paradise

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Dunsmuir-Mott Ramp 11-1-20

The Dunsmuir Municipal-Mott Airport – A mountain jewel

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Watertown Regional Airport – Coming back stronger

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Welcome to Leadville-Lake County Airport (aka Leadville Regional Airport) – North America’s highest public use airport that soars to impressive heights at an altitude of 9,934 feet! Located two miles southwest of the charming City of Leadville, the airport plays a significant role for the local communities of Lake and Summit Counties, linking them to the National Air Transportation System. Due to its elevation, Leadville Regional Airport has become recognized the world over for high altitude testing and training for the military and aerospace companies. With an average of 310 days of sunshine a year, historic silver mining boomtowns, the state’s highest peaks, and abundant public lands, Lake County, Colorado, features countless opportunities for year-round, high-country fun. Leadville’s own history as a frontier mountain town is filled with dramatic stories of real people who made and lost fortunes in the silver rush. Today, seven museums, a mine tour, a walking tour, and a driving tour let you experience life during those boom times. Walk Victorian downtown Leadville and the historic village of Twin Lakes. Find World War II foundations at Camp Hale, feed the fish at the historic hatchery, follow a long-time rail route on the Leadville scenic train… once you’ve arrived the first time, you’ll definitely want to return. Or maybe put down stakes and relocate. The Leadville area is an ideal setting to live and do business. And getting there is a pleasure all its own thanks to the convenience, professional service, and friendly atmosphere at Leadville-Lake County Airport. Equally popular in all seasons, the airport’s proximity to several major ski areas makes it an ideal jumping off place for winter sport enthusiasts. Leadville receives more than 156 inches of snow annually! But not to worry, the very capable snow removal team keeps the airport open and operating safely year round, so you’ll never miss a powder day. The Airport was originally built in the mid-1960s as a privately-owned facility and remained that way until 2009, when ownership was assumed by Lake County. In 2019, the new owner utilized an FAA grant of $5.8 million to make upgrades to its 6,400-ft. asphalt runway and taxiways. Additional upgrades, such as drainage improvements and new lighting systems were also accomplished at that time. APC Southern was the major contractor for the runway project and did a superior-quality paving job. They are touted by Airport Manager Brett Cottrell as “a really good company and a great group of people to work with.” He also gives a shout-out to “two key people who are responsible for the growth and development of this airport over the years: Director of Public Works Michael Irwin, who has been with the airport since the County took it over, and County Commissioner Kayla Marcella, who is key in connecting the economic development engine supporting Lake County’s vision.” For the last five years, Leadville-Lake County Airport has been self-sustaining and actually generating a profit thanks to the large quantity of helicopters utilizing the facility for testing. The airport happens to coincide with one of their critical benchmarks – height velocity diagrams at just short of 10,000 ft. – an excellent altitude for testing of any type. Conveniently open seven days a week, Fixed Base Operations is located in a newly-built contemporary facility that rivals any airport office in the region. Leadville-Lake County Airport is also home base to eight GA aircraft, with two private hangars that are currently full. In addition, the County owns a new 100x110-ft. heated, insulated, and plumbed hangar for commercial operations. Right now, it’s serving a dual role – available for when a large jet or helicopter wants to use it and, when that doesn’t take place, it can house six GA aircraft. If parking on the ramp is preferred, tie down fees for small aircraft are some of the most economical in the area. In an effort to expand the hangar space, Airport representatives have been meeting with a business consultant to determine the path forward. The current master plan calls for building two helicopter pads to the east of the existing airport property and to build a couple hangars along that stretch. The goal in meeting with a business consultant is to develop a business plan for growing the airport that includes added infrastructure, increasing ramp length, and having investors come in to build hangars. Because there is a lot of interest from people asking to park and maintain their aircraft at the airport now. Having the title “North America’s Highest Airport” is a good draw for the Leadville-Lake County region, and while they can’t compete with Aspen, they do offer a viable option because the airport is located less than an hour from 10 major ski resorts. Vale and Beaver in under an hour; Keystone and Breckenridge in 45 minutes, as well as a number of popular smaller ski resorts within easy reach. And people don’t have to fight the 1-70 crunch to get there. So the airport is channelling its marketing strategy in that direction. The regional FAA office in Colorado, as well as the Colorado Department of Transportation Aeronautics Division, are well aware of how good a job the County does in keeping the runway and the aprons plowed and clear of snow for winter traffic; they have the equipment; the expertise; and the ability to keep it maintained. The issue is having more ramp and hangar space available. In that regard, Lake County is pursuing an industrial park just outside the fence line that is part of the airport design, as they develop a plan to generate business investment opportunities for building in that area. Inside the fence line, there is space available north and south of the current FBO office that is east of the runway. Given that the runway is 6400 feet and only 500 ft is occupied, that leaves plenty of land open immediately adjacent to the taxiways, mostly for hangar space. “Friendly, accommodating, scenic, accessible, congenial” – these are some of the many compliments heard from executives that fly in to Leadville-Lake County Airport on corporate and private jets. They’re pleased with how easy it is to pull in off the runway and that there are good people to help at the gate. And you can’t beat the view – the two highest mountains in Colorado covered in snow. Leadville is a small town with a cozy environment, overall a unique, historic place and an idyllic destination. It just doesn’t get any better.

Leadville-Lake County Airport – Reaching higher

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The Heart of Georgia Regional Airport is located three miles east of the City of Eastman in South Central Georgia, and services general aviation air traffic from all over the southeast United States. The Airport was originally built by the State of Georgia for the Stuckey’s Corporation to support its business operations. “Mr. W.S. Stuckey, who started the candy company here in Eastman, Georgia, selling pecan log rolls by the side of the road, kept expanding and started putting stores all up and down the Interstate,” explains Airport Manager, Jeff Fordham. “They had a Piper Aztec, and their airstrip was not long enough, so they came out here and built the Airport because they needed a place to land their bigger planes.” When the facility was officially dedicated in December 1966, then Governor Carl Sanders hailed the $232,000 Eastman-Dodge County Airport as “the first community airport in Georgia that we have built specifically to accommodate the modern business jet airplanes that are becoming so important in one industry after another.” Today, the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport is owned and operated by Heart of Georgia Regional Airport Authority and is overseen by a seven-member Board of Directors, made up of two members from the Eastman City Council, two members from the Dodge County Board Commissioners Office – one is a sitting board member from each of those, and one is an at-large appointment - and two members from the Dodge County-Eastman Development Authority – one is a board member, one is an at-large appointment. The seventh member is appointed by the Georgia House of Representatives. The Airport’s original 4,500-ft. runway was lengthened to 6,506 feet in 2004, and equipped with a precision instrument landing system and a landing capacity of 100,000 pounds. A new terminal and tower were completed in 2005. The Airport supports between 300-400 operations per day, comprised of general aviation, corporate, military, flight training, customs and border patrol, air ambulance, and aerial agricultural traffic, making it the 5th busiest take-off and landing airport in the state. Over the last several years, the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport has also become a major aviation education presence in the Southeast. It is home to Middle Georgia State University’s Aviation Center – Georgia’s only state-supported aviation center – which trains pilots and airport and airline management majors, while giving airframe and power plant students the skills required to build and maintain aviation assets. The school’s flight program is FAA-approved, and its campus at the Airport is home to a fleet of 30 airplanes, four helicopters, and several advanced simulators used in training and instruction. In 2007, the school’s Air Traffic Control Management program was named the top new ATC program in the nation by the FAA. The Airport is also home to several aviation manufacturing and maintenance firms. Fordham Aviation Inc. provides aircraft maintenance services; KENCOA Aerospace LLC is a premier Tier-1 supplier of multi-axis precision machined and sheet metal fabricated aerostructures, jet engine components, and major assemblies for commercial, military, and business/regional jets, worldwide; AREMAC Heat Treating East, LLC, is a nationally recognized heat treatment company; and Valence Surface Technologies is a full-service metal finishing company for the aerospace industry. Machining, heat treatment, and finish coating, located next door to each other on the same airport – a unique capacity that isn’t repeated anywhere in the country – means a much faster turnaround for parts manufacturing and final delivery to companies such as Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed-Martin, Gulfstream, and Sikorsky. All of this activity means that the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport plays a vital role in supporting the region with 376 jobs with an annual payroll of $14,700,000, and $37,169,000 in economic output for the local and regional economies. As airport tenancy continues to grow – there are currently around 60 private and corporate home-based aircraft on property - Fordham says that he would like to see more hangars built by private developers - as opposed to the county footing the bill. “Right now, everything is owned by the Airport and rented out. We have 18 hangars and they’re all full. There’s a lot of land on the west side of the airport; most everything has been developed on the east side. I think there’s a couple of hundred acres, at least, that’s available to develop with more to be obtained if we need it,” he notes. “We’re getting ready to do an apron re-hab project – we’re still working on the cost for that; it should be somewhere around a million dollars. We also want to put in a taxiway into an area where we can build more hangars or have ground leases so others can build hangars. I think it’s better if people build their own hangars.” Fordham says that the Airport’s 6,506-ft. runway is currently able to handle any normal traffic. “There was some talk about lengthening the runway, but we haven’t gotten that solidified yet,” he shares. “Right now, we’ve got a very good runway with two parallel taxiways and the pavement is in pretty good shape. So, I don’t foresee having any resurfacing projects within the next five years or so.” Regarding any potential competition from nearby airports, Fordham says that Heart of Georgia has lots of services available that one wouldn’t necessarily find elsewhere. “We have everything from catering, to courtesy cars, to 24-hour fuel availability for jets and pistons,” he reports. “And our normal operating hours are a little bit longer; we’re open 8-5 Monday through Saturday, and 12-5 on Sunday. And we don’t mind staying till seven or eight o’clock at night if we need to. A lot of airports, after a certain hour, you can’t get anybody; but we’re pretty much available 24/7 if anyone calls. With COVID, we had to cut back on our hours, but we try to pride ourselves on our accessibility and our customer service.”

The Heart of Georgia Regional Airport – Accessibility and customer service

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Wiscasset Aerial

The Wiscasset Municipal Airport – Good, any time of year

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Indiana County Jimmy Stewart Airport

The Indiana County Jimmy Stewart Airport – Looking to grow

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Virginia Highlands

Virginia Highlands Airport – Easy in, easy out

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Raleigh County Memorial Airport

Raleigh County Memorial Airport – Room to develop

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Valley International

Valley International Airport – Looking for opportunities

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CONTRA COSTA COUNTY AIRPORTS

Contra Costa County Airports – New test site opens

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MCKELLAR–SIPES REGIONAL AIRPORT

McKellar–Sipes Regional Airport – One of the best in Tennessee

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Bryce Canyon Airport

Bryce Canyon Airport – A natural wonder

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