Friday, September 30, 2011

Get moving on airport plans. Igor I Sikorsky Memorial Airport (KBDR), Bridgeport, Connecticut.

A plan to improve safety at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford has moved one step closer to reality with the ruling last week by the Federal Aviation Administration that the proposal to establish a safety area would not adversely affect the environment.

This decision should allay the fears of those Stratford residents who brought their concerns to a public hearing, and should also dilute the overall opposition in the town, whether it be environmentally based or not, to improving safety at the region's airport.

The city of Bridgeport, which owns the airport, wants to put a 300-foot strip of collapsible material at the end of one of the runways, eliminating the need for a so-called blast fence that now stands.

Opponents have inaccurately referred to the safety zone as an extension of the runway. It is, by design, incapable of serving as part of a runway. It's designed to crumble under the weight of an aircraft.

Putting in that 300-foot strip would require moving a portion of Stratford's Main Street, which is actually state Route 113. Airport manager John Ricci said he intends to apply within the month for the OKs needed to move the road.

It's time to get this process moving.

http://www.ctpost.com

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