News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
The Upper Cumberland Regional Airport’s new instrument landing system is complete and awaiting final approval to come online.
Airport Director Dean Selby said the system uses a radio beacon that allows aircrafts to find the airport runway’s centerline up to thirty miles away. Selby said their last instrument landing system had reached the end of its life, as it was installed in the early 1990s.
“It’s mostly the same as what we had before, it’s just finally we’re going to get it back on the air,” Selby said. “It’s been off the air now for several months. It just got to where that we couldn’t get parts for the older equipment, so hopefully this will get us back to where that it’s something that’s a workable system.”
Selby said they have completed the flight, ground, and airborne tests needed to confirm the new system is ready to go. Selby said they are now just waiting on a final signature from the FAA which they hope to have within a week.
“We do see negative impacts from, especially large jet and heavier aircraft operators, they’re looking for that piece of equipment and it does impact their abilities to come in and out,” Selby said.
Selby said the lack of such a system has also had a negative effect on the medical helicopter at the airport.
“They need the instrument landing system as part of their op specs to be able to operate in some of the conditions they operate in,” Selby said.
Selby said they installed the antenna for the system and then an FAA installer came in to do the final cut-in for the rest of it.
