National Academies Press: OpenBook

A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports (2011)

Chapter: Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background

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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2011. A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14547.
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Page 1
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Suggested Citation:"Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2011. A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14547.
×
Page 2
Page 3
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2011. A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14547.
×
Page 3
Page 4
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2011. A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14547.
×
Page 4
Page 5
Suggested Citation:"Chapter 1 - Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2011. A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14547.
×
Page 5

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

Introduction—Using This Guidebook This Guidebook provides a user-friendly, plain-language, non-technical outline of (1) why some public-use airports have closed, (2) how to recognize airports with a growing risk of potential closure, and (3) what measures interested parties can take to preserve U.S. public-use airports. This Guidebook is also a gateway to a large body of technical and non-technical literature rel- evant to public-use airport preservation. Chapter 7, Airport Advocate Resources, provides information on useful resources and references. Many of these resources and publications are available for free. Information in this Guidebook is organized as follows: • Chapter 1 provides an introduction and overview of the research that preceded the Guidebook. The research approach and basic findings are reviewed to give the Guide- book user a foundation on which to read, understand, and implement Guidebook guidance. • Chapter 2 provides the reader with a “big picture” of the long-term historical data trends applicable to the chang- ing numbers of public-use airports in the United States, the number of active civil aircraft, and civilian pilot licens- ing numbers and activity. • Chapter 3 introduces the concepts of “airport closure risk factors” and presents the main body of basic data and information collected during the Guidebook research. Dif- ferent modes of data collection are addressed in separate sections, so that users can clearly understand the differing data sources and what information emerged from the var- ious different data collection efforts. • Chapter 4 organizes “airport closure risk factors” in rela- tion to grant obligation status, economic, community and environmental, and infrastructure areas; identifies poten- tial practical roles for individual airport advocates and entities; provides discussion of air- port closure risk factors; and identifies extensive airport advocacy and preservation reference materials. • Chapter 5 discusses selected long-term airport preservation strategies and mechanisms. 1 C H A P T E R 1 Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background Most current FAA publications are available free on the Internet for downloading at www.faa.gov. Click on “Airports” as a starting point. Always check the FAA web- site to ensure you have the most current FAA publications. Many ACRP publications are available for free on line and can be downloaded at www.trb.org/ acrp/public/acrp.aspx Check this web address regularly for newly released TRB and ACRP publications.

• Chapter 6 presents additional research findings from the interview and polling efforts. • Chapter 7 lists publications and resources for airport advocates to use in advancing public-use airport preservation. Most of these materials and resources are available for free. Background and Project Objectives In 1969 there were more than 6,700 public-use airports in the United States; that number has dropped to about 5,000 public-use air- ports. 1 For almost four decades, the number of public-use airports in the United States has been in decline. Some public-use airports are still at risk of closure for conversion to non-aviation uses, often for alter- native land uses such as residential or commercial development. It has often been difficult to find comprehensive and reliable information on why airports actually close, how to preserve public-use airports, and what options and strategies may be avail- able to airport advocates. This Guidebook provides information on how to (1) recognize and identify threats to public-use airports and (2) identify and use the options and strategies for pre- serving public-use airports. This Guidebook describes why public-use airports close, identifies measures and strategies that can be taken to help preserve public-use airports, and discusses the roles and responsibilities of parties interested in preventing public-use airport closures. This Guide- book is intended to be a resource for all interested parties, including state and local agencies, air- port owners and operators, airport users, engineering and planning professionals, preservation advocacy groups, and local economic development organizations. Public-use airport preservation should not be envisioned as a last- minute dramatic rescue to save a runway from approaching bulldoz- ers. Public-use airport preservation is about achieving and promot- ing those things that, in the long run, will result in a well-equipped, well-maintained, and well-run airport that is integrated into its com- munity. Public-use airport preservation is not a sprint, but a marathon of preventive and corrective actions and can involve a wide spectrum of airport advocates. The important and most effective efforts for public-use airport preservation are done over the long term by identifying and satis- factorily addressing airport economic, infrastructure, access, fund- ing, and community and environmental issues. This is the real work of public-use airport preservation and it involves all interested air- port stakeholders. The rescue of an airport facing closure leaves an airport that still must address its economic, infrastructure, access, funding, and community and environmental issues. This Guide- book can help airport advocates identify and address the real causes of public-use airport closures—deficiencies in dealing with eco- nomic, infrastructure, access, funding, and community and envi- ronmental issues. The appendices to this Guidebook offers useful technical and non-technical reference documents for immediate study and use by airport advocates. This Guidebook can help airport advocates use proven, compre- hensive public-use airport preservation strategies. Airport advocates 2 A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports Throughout this Guidebook are text boxes marked with icons. The icons indicate information that may be of interest ( ), particu- larly important points ( ), and typical questions with their answers ( ). This Guidebook cannot provide legal advice or interpret FAA or state or local regulations or policies. 5 Public-use airports and public-use landing areas are different. As used in this Guidebook, a public- use airport is any airport that is open to the public, without restric- tion, except for safety or opera- tional reasons. A public-use airport can be either publicly or privately owned. Public-use airport numbers do not include public-use heliports and seaplane bases. In 1969 there were about 6,710 public-use airports and in 2007 there were about 5,000 public-use airports. When you include public-use seaplane bases and heliports there were 7,192 public-use landing areas in 1969 and 5,221 public-use landing areas in 2007. 1

are shown many long- and near-term steps for helping to preserve, or potentially rescue, public-use airports. In using this Guidebook, remember that public-use airports pushed into closure usually get to that point because of the cumulative effects of numerous different long- and short-term factors. The findings in this Guidebook were developed from the following: • Interviews and polling of 481 persons involved in U.S. civil aviation. • Analysis of the characteristics of 200 public-use airports closed from 1997 to 2007. • Analysis of 10 recently completed State Airport System Plans. • Analysis of 8 case study public-use airports. • Analysis of historical data trends for public-use airports, licensed pilots, aircraft, and flight time. • Identification and documentation of all U.S. public-use airports closed since 1977. • Literature review findings. The research behind this Guidebook found many differing reasons why individual public- use airports come to the point of closing. In many cases, the reasons are both complex and cumulative. There is typically no simple “headline reason” that pushes an airport to closure. An airport closure results over time, usually years. Although the end of an airport can occur quickly, the circumstances that ultimately cause the closure almost certainly developed slowly over time. It is vital that airport advocates and other persons inter- ested in preserving airports understand clearly what circum- stances and situations put public-use airports at potential increased risk of closure. 4 Fact-based knowledge and insights into what causes public-use airports to close will give airport advocates crucial knowledge and insights on how to preserve public-use airports. This Guidebook will show airport advocates and other interested parties how to identify the circumstances that put airports at increased risk of closure and what strategies and measures may be taken to help protect an airport from poten- tial closure. Given that most reasons for airport closures tend to emerge from long-term circumstances, the strategies for protecting airports from closure also tend to be long term in character. Reasons for Public-Use Airport Closures The research behind this Guidebook identified 16 separate, but interrelated, reasons why public-use airports come to the point of closure. The reasons can be based on economics, infrastructure, funding, land use, environmental issues, and community relations. Often there are multiple reasons for an airport’s closure. Additionally, many of the reasons for closure will have been in place for many years. Each reason Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background 3 Airport preservation actions and airport rescues are NOT the same thing. Airport rescues are emer- gent actions to save an airport from imminent closing and fre- quently do not deal with the underlying reasons of why or how an airport came to the brink of closure. In the 1960s and 1970s vast por- tions of America’s freight and pas- senger rail networks permanently closed, although only 20 years earlier rail was a predominant means of intercity passenger and goods movement. Preserving important public infrastructure such as America’s intercity rail- road could have greatly benefited today’s travelers and relieved a considerable amount of highway congestion. Q: Who can get involved in pre- serving a public-use airport? A: Almost anyone with a per- sonal, professional, or economic interest in aviation or aviation services.

can manifest itself as a risk factor. If an airport exhibits too many risk factors, and they are not sufficiently offset by cor- rective protective actions, an airport is at greatly increased risk of closure. Think of it as a see-saw with risk factors on one side and corrective protective actions on the other. Which side would your airport lean to? The 16 reasons why public-use airports typically close are as follows. • Public Funding and Grant Obligation Status. 8 Airports without federal or state airport aid grant obligations are at increased risk. • Economic Reasons 9 – Public/Private Ownership. Privately owned airports are at greater risk of closure than pub- licly owned airports. – Generational Shift at Privately Owned Airports. At times of generational shift in manage- ment or ownership, privately owned airports are at increased risk. – Level of Traffic and Airport-Based Aircraft. Airports with low levels of airport traffic and/or airport-based aircraft are at increased risk. – Total Available Customer Services. Airports with fewer customer services are at increased risk. – Total Airport Revenue; Fee and Charges Management. Airports generating insufficient lev- els of airport revenue are at increased risk. – Marketing and Airport Promotion. Airports not engaged in marketing and airport promo- tion are at increased risk. – Business Planning. Airports not engaged in written business planning are at increased risk. – Business Succession and Continuity Planning. Airports not engaged in written business succession and continuity planning are at increased risk. • Community and Environmental Reasons 10 – Community Education and Outreach. Airports not engaged in community outreach and education are at increased risk. – Land Use Planning and Zoning. Airports surrounded by incompatible land use, planning, and zoning are at increased risk. – Community Relations. Airports with poor community relations are at increased risk. – Environmental Stewardship and Noise Management. Airports perceived as unresponsive environmental stewards are at increased risk. – Part of Community Economic Vision. Airports not generally perceived as being part of a community’s “economic vision” are at increased risk. • Infrastructure Reasons 11 – Runway Length and Total Available Airport Infrastruc- ture. Airports with shorter runways and less total avail- able infrastructure are at increased risk. – Condition of Airport Infrastructure; Deferred Mainte- nance. Airports with deteriorating airport infrastructure are at increased risk. Research Approach To produce the research for this Guidebook, the researchers • Conducted a literature review to identify why public-use airports are closing, what can be done to help preserve public-use airports, and what is being done in other fields of property preser- vation so as to identify new ways and means of potentially preserving public-use airports. 4 A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports 87% of interview subjects believe that small airports will be impor- tant to the next generation. 7 74% of interview subjects believe that airport closures will be a prob- lem in the future. 12

• Collected data on the numbers and long-term historical trends for public-use airport num- bers, numbers of licensed pilots, hours of civil aircraft flight time, and numbers of registered civil aircraft. • Collected data to establish and document the numbers, identities, and locations of the public- use airports that have closed in the past 40 years in the United States. • Collected and analyzed data on the characteristics of the 200 public-use airports that have closed in the United States over the past decade, specifically during the 11 years from 1996 to 2007, inclusive, so as to establish their indi- vidual characteristics and identify and document airport closure risk factors. • Interviewed people active in aviation to collect and analyze data on why public-use airports are closing and what can be done to help preserve public-use airports and to collect related opinion and other data. By the end of the research, 481 persons had been interviewed or polled. • Analyzed 10 recent State Airport System Plans to collect and analyze data on why public-use airports are closing, what can be done to help preserve public-use airports, and how the closure of airports affects airport systems. • Analyzed eight case study airports to collect and analyze data on why public-use airports are closing, what can be done to help preserve public-use airports, and how the closure of air- ports affects airport systems. • Developed a Guidebook for airport advocates that describes the reasons why public-use airports close, what measures and strategies can be taken to preserve public-use airports, and how airport advocates may effectively organize and act to promote airport preservation. Preservation of Public-Use Airports Research Background 5 Representatives from 49 states and several Canadian Provinces were interviewed during the research for this Guidebook. 13 The top five general problems in general aviation cited by the inter- view subjects were high fuel costs, funding/budget shortfalls, high costs generally, over-regulation, and airspace. The next highest were lack of local and political sup- port, economic conditions gener- ally, land use conflicts, changing land values, incompatible develop- ment patterns around airports, and low business profits.

Next: Chapter 2 - Historical Background and Long-Term Data Trends »
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TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Report 44: A Guidebook for the Preservation of Public-Use Airports describes why public-use airports close and identifies measures and strategies that can be undertaken to potentially help preserve and prevent an airport closure.

The guidebook presents step-by-step procedures on how to identify risk factors that can increase the potential of a future airport closure and how to formulate an effective airport preservation program.

The guidebook also identifies potential groups interested in preserving public-use airports and offers practical checklists for identifying and addressing issues as part of a comprehensive strategic airport planning program in support of preservation efforts.

The guidebook is supplemented by a set of appendices which are available on a CD-ROM included with the printed version of the report.

The CD-ROM is also available for download from TRB’s website as an ISO image.

Links to the ISO image and instructions for burning a CD-ROM from an ISO image are provided below.

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CD-ROM Disclaimer - This software is offered as is, without warranty or promise of support of any kind either expressed or implied. Under no circumstance will the National Academy of Sciences or the Transportation Research Board (collectively “TRB’) be liable for any loss or damage caused by the installation or operations of this product. TRB makes no representation or warranty of any kind, expressed or implied, in fact or in law, including without limitation, the warranty of merchantability or the warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, and shall not in any case be liable for any consequential or special damages.

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