2011/12/12 Airport Master Plan Presentation Part 1S27
Kalispell City Airport
Draft Master Plan Presentation
Monday, December 12, 2011
City of Kalispell, Council Chambers
Kalispell, Montana
Presentation by:
Jeff Walla, PE
Stelling Engineers, Inc.
1372 Airport Road
Kalispell, MT 59901
406-755-8602
Stelling
mSE I Engineers, Inc.
HE
City Airp�
Master Plannin
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Process
Purpose of this Meeting:
Presentation of Draft Master Plan
Update to City. Copies Being Provided
to City and FAA for Comment.
Public Participation:
September 22, 2010 Kickoff Meeting
January 18, 2011 Open House to
Review Airport Planning Criteria
April 25, 2011 Open House to Present
Preliminary Airport Alternatives
December 12, 2011 Council Workshop
to Present Draft Master Plan Update
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Contents of Master Plan
Chapter 2 — Recommended Airport Plan
— Part of Final Master Plan
— Recommended Alternative that Results in an Airport Layout Plan
Chapter 3 - Airport Inventory
Chapter 4 - Aviation Forecasts
— FAA Approval of Forecasts Required
— Chapter Sent to FAA on June 16, 2011
— Still Awaiting FAA Comment
Chapter 5 - Facility Needs
— Chapter Sent to FAA on June 16, 2011
— Still Awaiting FAA Comment
Chapter 6 - Improvement Alternatives
— Does not Include Recommendation at This Time
— Recommendation will be Made Following FAA/City/Public Review
and Comment of Draft Master Plan
Chapter 7 — Capital Program
— Part of Final Master Plan
— Based on Recommended Alternative
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What's Next
Review and Comment of Draft Master Plan
Update - FAA, City,, & Public
Select Recommended Alternative
- Or additional study/evaluation if necessary
Complete Remaining Chapters
— Recommended Plan — Chapter 2
— Capital Program —Chapter 7
Issue Final Master Plan Update Document
City to Accept or Reject Recommendation
— City may choose to proceed with different
alternative
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What's Next (cont.
Schedule
— Important to follow federal NEPA process
— Requires adequate time for FAA reviews
and public comment
— Review of Draft Master Plan may take
from anywhere from 30 days to 90 days
— Additional evaluations could extend time
frame
— Earliest completion date is likely early
March
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Airport Invento
Gather and Review Existing Information on Airport
— Past Planning Studies, Development, Land Acquisition,
Funding, Correspondence, etc.
Summarize Airport History
Identify/Update Existing Airport Facilities
— Runway, Taxiways, Taxilanes, Aprons, Land, Lighting,
NAVAIDs, Hangars, Access Roads, etc.
Identify/Update Development and Land Use Around the
Airport
Evaluate Facilities for Safety and Compliance Issues
— Design Criteria (ARC B-I, B-II, etc.)
— Airspace, Obstructions (FAR Part 77), Flight Procedures
Conduct Users (Pilots) Survey (see Appendix H)
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Airport Inventory (Cont.
Runway Width is 60" Wide and Meets ARC B-
I(SAE)
Taxiway Width is Only 20" and Separation From
Runway 135'. Does Not Meet B-I Standards
Runway Length is 3,,600" and Meets
Requirements for 75% of small aircraft fleet
Runway Protection Zones Don't Meet Standards
Many Part 77 Obstructions Including Businesses
on Highway 93 and Radio Towers
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Aviation Forecasts
Examines the Potential Demand for
Aviation Activity at a Particular Airport
— Typically Based on Published Data and National
Trends to Estimate Demand
— This Analysis Actually Based on Collected Field
Data by Conducting Acoustic Counts
— Actual Based Aircraft Inventory
— Aircraft Type Monitoring Documented by
Installing Motion Sensing Cameras at Each
Runway End and Reviewing Pilots Survey.
— Current & Future Aviation Forecasts
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.)
Based Aircraft
— There are currently seventy-two (72) based aircraft which
are classified as Approach Category A; and three (3) based
aircraft which are classified as Approach Category B.
— Sixty-nine (69) of the based aircraft owners reside in
Montana; thirteen (13) reside out-of-state. Of the State
residents, thirty-five (35) are from Kalispell and additional
thirty-four (34) are spread out through the Flathead Valley;
three (3) are in Missoula, and the remaining one (1) in -State
aircraft owner resides in Shelby.
— All single engine aircraft at Kalispell City Airport fall into ARC
A -I, the most common being Cessna 172's and 182's.
— One Group II aircraft, a Blanik L-13 Glider with a wing span
of 53'-2" is based at Kalispell City Airport.
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.)
Aircraft Operations
— An aircraft operation is defined as a takeoff, a
landing, or a touch and go
— Acoustic counter measures and records the noise
generated on a takeoff or touch and go; it does
not record landings
— Counter recorded 6,281 noise events at the airport
from September 22, 2010 to September 1, 2011
— Assuming that 20% of these were touch and go
operations, landings were estimated to arrive at a
total operations count of 11,306 for the year
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.)
Prior forecasts were approximately 40,000 or
almost 4 times higher....why?
— Winter weather was a factor ... few operations in
November, December, January and March
— Fuel prices....gradual decline in fuel sales over the
past 3 years
— Economy....
— Bottom line is that the original forecasts were
likely erroneous. Data collected this year is much
closer to a typical year.
— Weather, fuel prices, and economic conditions also
played a role in limiting operations this year.
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.)
Estimated Aircraft Operations
— Acoustic counts were subjectively adjusted upward
approximately 10% to arrive at a base line
operations forecast of 14,000 per year
— Based on aircraft photographed at airport,
approximately 58% of the operations are from
based aircraft and 42% are from itinerant a i rcaft
— Growth trends based on regression analysis of
aviation growth forecast in the TAF of
approximately 1.55% which is about half of the
projected growth rate for the City of Kalispell
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.
Critical Aircraft
— Motion sensing cameras used on both runway
ends to capture images of aircraft using the airport
— Obtain aircraft make, model, owner, etc. from tail
number information
— Use information to create a fleet mix of aircraft
using the airport
— Not perfect tool; hard to identify night flights and
the cameras don't always capture every flight
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.)
Critical Aircraft
— 95% of the aircraft are categorized as ARC A -I, with Cessna
172's and 182's being the most common.
— 34% were of aircraft owned and operated by Red Eagle
Aviation and used for flight instruction.
— 3% are twin -engine aircraft categorized as ARC B-I aircraft,
with Piper Chieftan, Aztec, and Beechcraft Baron being the
most common.
— 2% were by helicopters. While rotary wing aircraft are
required to use the airport traffic pattern to arrive and
depart, it doesn't always happen.
— Only two 2) turbine -engine aircraft were observed during
this period,, a Beechcraft 99 and a Piper Meridian both of
which are categorized as ARC B-I.
— No ARC B-II aircraft were observed during this period.
— No jet aircraft were observed during this period.
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Aviation Forecasts (cont.
The critical aircraft with a minimum of 500 annual
operations is typical of aircraft in Approach Category A and
Design Group I (ARC A -I).
Planning should account for an increase in design standards
to the new level of approach category and design group.
Approach Category B standards will likely be warranted in
the near future
The timing or the need to upgrade to Design Group II
standards is not as certain.
— Documented operations were well below the 500 annual
operations needed to justify a DG-II facility.
— Historically, there is reported used by these larger aircraft
but it does not seem to be consistent year to year.
— It is very likely though that if the facilities were expanded
to DG-II standards that operations from these types of
aircraft would increase.
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Facility Needs
The facility needs defines the physical facilities
needed to safely and efficiently accommodate
the current and future aviation demands at the
Kalispell City Airport
Typical components related to Critical Aircraft
that affect airport design:
— Aircraft Approach Speed;
— Airplane Size (wingspan, tail height, etc.);
— Aircraft Takeoff Requirements (weight)
Aircraft approach speed and size typically relate
to dimensional requirements of airside facilities;
takeoff requirements relate to pavement
strength and runway length.
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Facility Needs (cont.
Although the current aviation forecast does not
show the need to upgrade to ARC B-II, the FAA
won't support funding unless the airport is
upgraded to the higher standard
Upgrading to B-II will make the current airport
facility safer for the operations that are forecast
Runway length is not a design standard but
rather facility component that allows a runway
to service a specific ""critical aircraft" or a range
of aircraft types
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Facility Needs (cont.
Airport Design Standards — Upgrade to
ARC B-II
— Runway widened from 60" to 75"
— Runway/Taxiway separation increased
from 135" to 240"
—Taxiway width increased from 20#'to 35#'
— Increases in safety area and object free
area requirements
— Runway Protection Zones increase to 500"
x 700#'x 1,000'r
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Facili
Needs
cont.
Runway Length
— Current length of 3,600" meets length
requirements for 75% of small aircraft
fleet
— FAA will require land acquisition to protect
for a future runway extension that meets
95% of small aircraft fleet; but they won't
require construction of the extension
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Facili
FAR Part 77
Needs (cont.
— Criteria based on approach type and runway
category
— Recommendation is to protect for anon -precision
instrument runway with visibility minimums
greater than 3/4 mile
— Remove radio tower obstructions into approach
surface and transitional surface
— Remove building obstructions into 7:1 transitional
surface
— Remove buildings/hangars on site that penetrate
into primary surface
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Facility Needs (cont.
Pavement Strength
— Typically based on critical aircraft type, number
of operations, and wheel arrangement
— A ""utility" aircraft is one weighing less than
12,500 pounds SWG and is the FAA's minimum
weight requirement for pavement design
— Pavement strength can be increased easily with
asphalt overlays
— Pavement strength requirements for Kalispell City
Airport is 12,500 pounds SWG
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Improvement Alternatives
Always Need to Evaluate ""Doing Nothing"
— Let the Airport continue to exist without any
investment.
— Eventually will be required to close
Must Consider Relocation to Alternate Site
— This may involve an independent site selection
study but one was completed in 2002
On -Site Development Alternatives
— Typically done with alternatives that meet the
Facility Needs
— At City's request, there were alternatives
developed that do not meet Facility Needs and
would therefore be ineligible for federal funding
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Improvement Alternatives (cont)
Existing Site Development Constraints
— US Highway 93 and Businesses
— 18t" Street E
— Airport Road, WWTP, and Ashley Creek
— Demersville Cemetery
— Cemetery Road
— West Side Apron and Hangar Development
— See Exhibit 6-1 in Master Plan
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Improvement Alternatives (cont)
Preliminary Alternative Development Process
— Review alternatives from original Master Plan and sites
from Site Selection Study
— Eliminate alternatives and sites no longer feasible
— Develop new alternatives or sites that were not considered
in original planning studies
— Obtain Public Comment — From April 25thOpen House
— Obtain City and FAA Comment
• City Planning Staff Memo
• Airport Advisory Board Meeting
• FAA & City Conference Call
Final Study Alternatives refined from screening process
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Improvement Alternatives (cont)
Alternative Refinement Goals
— One on -site Alternative that provides ARC B-II
standards and is eligible for federal funding
— One on -site Alternative that provides some safety
improvements that would not be eligible for
federal funding
— One Alternative at a new site that provides ARC
6-II standards and is eligible for federal funding
— Do -Nothing
— Relocate to Glacier Park International
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Improvement Alternatives (cont)
Alternative Screening Criteria
— Criteria used to evaluate and compare
alternatives
Aeronautical Criteria
Safety -Design -Geometry
Non -Aeronautical Criteria
Access to the Airport/Proximity to Kalispell
Airspace/FAR Part 77 Obstructions
Environmental Concerns
Instrument Capability
Economic Benefit
Wind Alignment
Available Infrastructure
Expandability
Public Acceptance/Support
Proximity to Other Airports
Owner/User Support
Initial Development Costs
Local Cost Contribution
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Preliminary Alternatives
Three B-II Alternatives at the Existing Airport —
Eligible for Federal Funding
Three B-I Alternatives at the Existing Airport —
Ineligible for Federal Funding
Four Alternate Sites
— Two options at Site 2 near Old School Station
— One option at Site 3 near MontFord Road and
Highway 35
— Three Options at Site 4 near Egan Slough
— One Option at Site 5 northwest of the City
Kalispell City Airport — December 12, 2011