Frank Cade thought he might never see the runway extension project at Kokomo Municipal Airport come to fruition.
Now the completion appears to be ready for takeoff after it was awarded a $2.2-million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The project, which will extend the airport’s main runway from 5,200 feet to 6,000 feet, has been 12 years in the making. Cade, the airport’s manager for the past nine years, said layout plans for the extension date back as far as 1973.
“We’re excited to put this project to rest,” Cade said.
The dirt work on the runway extension already has been completed, Cade said. Now the remainder of the project can be finished, including grading and LED lighting upgrades to the runways and taxiways.
The FAA is funding 95 percent of the project, with a local match of 2.5 percent and the other 2.5 percent coming from Indiana Department of Transportation funds.
The upgrades will allow the airport to take in more traffic by extending the runway. The FAA requires an airport the size of Kokomo’s to have a 6,000-foot runway as an industry standard.
Cade expects construction on the runway could start within a week and be completed by November.
“One of the most important things is to make the runway better for our current users,” Cade said. “There’s a lot of freight that comes and goes from here and some of the larger planes can’t take a full load of fuel because of the [length] of the runway. If they’re on the East or West Coast, they have to make an additional stop.”
Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight said the airport continues to be a major asset to the city, providing service to Chrysler, General Motors, Delphi, Haynes International, Indiana University Kokomo, in addition to passenger flights.
“Expanding the Kokomo Municipal Airport’s runway meets the demand expressed by our international companies,” Goodnight said. “The airport is a major asset for Kokomo, and enhancing its capacity is part of our efforts to attract and retain business and industry.”
The FAA already has spent about $8 million on the project, including money for land acquisitions, funds to re-route County Road 300 East and level off runway safety areas on either end of the main runway.
Cade said he is excited to see the project’s completion in sight as he plans to retire this week. He has spent a total of 31 years working for the airport, including 25 with the City of Kokomo and the last nine as the airport’s director.
Cade will be moving with his wife to the Florida Keys, where she has taken a job as the postmaster in Key West.