News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Upper Cumberland Regional Airport has begun the process of updating its Airport layout Plan (ALP).
Airport Manager Dean Selby said the FAA requires an update to the plan every 10-years.
“Ours has exceeded 10-years, so it’s time we have to do a new airport layout plan,” Selby said. “It helps us plan, budget wise, for what’s going in the future and it helps the federal government plan for what they’re going to have to expend on this airport. It also helps the state prepare for what they’re going to need to come to the table with.”
The plan depicts future projects at the airport, including new hangars and extensions to taxiways and runaways. Selby said a company just completed the first step in updating the plan.
“The first step was identifying all of the obstructions and any problems at the airport,” Selby said. “A company called Quantum Spatial was contracted to do that. They actually spent a whole day flying this airport with a specially-equipped aircraft that has a lidar on it, which is a laser radar that can measure every obstruction and piece of equipment. They also came out here with GPS targeting signals to measure every piece of equipment on the field in the exact geo-location of where it is.”
The next step involves designing any future projects based on the collected data. All of the information eventually goes into a final plan maintained by the FAA.
Selby said updating the plan is important because it helps the airport qualify for different grants.
“Anytime I apply for a federal grant or state grant, one of the questions is, ‘is this on your approved ALP?’,” Selby said. “That’s a determining factor as to whether they can approve that money or not.”
The airport used a $200,000 grant to help pay for the project.
