SOMERSET
COUNTY— The Somerset County commissioners approved a $3,800
supplemental engineering and design agreement with L.R. Kimball of
Ebensburg Tuesday for a 40-foot automated weather observation system
tower as part of the airport’s rehabilitation project.
The
airport has a tower, but it does not comply with Federal Aviation
Administration regulations and must be replaced, said Somerset County
Airport Manager Dave Wright. The county has been working on the project
for 18 months, he said.
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In
2012 the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and FAA released
hundreds of thousands of dollars to update the airport master plan and
rehabilitate navigational aids. The county will be responsible for about
$7,400 for both.
“I always look at best ways to use the money
and to save the money while using it for the best of our needs,” Wright
said. “Originally, when the grant was written, we didn’t include
replacement of our existing AWOS tower” because it was functional and
adhered to federal regulations at the time.
The FAA came back
with new regulations and found that the airport’s tower was too low
relative to the height of the terminal building, he said.
“When
the wind hits the top of the building they were concerned it could give
off false indications for direction and strength of wind, a crucial
piece of decision-making information for pilots,” Wright said.
The grant money also will be used to replace the airport’s beacon tower with a more efficient lighting unit.
With the commissioner’s decision the project will be put out to bid within a month or so, he said.
“I’d not expect the work to start this year,” he said.
Source: http://www.dailyamerican.com