SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Salt Lake City International Airport soon could start persuading smaller aircraft to use other airports to better handle busy airline schedules and attract more commercial flights.
Steve Domino, a consultant with RS&H facilities and infrastructure consulting firm, told the Airport Advisory Board last week that “it may not be reasonable to continue to provide service for small general aviation aircraft” at the main airport, The Salt Lake Tribune reported .
“While general aviation aircraft are always allowed here, we think the policy should be directed to try to encourage those small (aircraft) operations at other general aviation airports,” he said.
South Valley Regional Airport in West Jordan and Tooele Valley Airport in Erda, both owned by Salt Lake City, are options.
The suggestions came during an update about work on a new general aviation master plan for the three airports. Domino said it is still in the early stages.
Domino said more general aviation aircraft are based at Salt Lake City International Airport than all the nation’s other large hub airports combined: 178, compared to 89 in the rest of the nation, excluding Honolulu.
He said commercial aircraft approaching the airport are spaced about three nautical miles and 75 seconds apart. When a small propeller aircraft is added to queue, their spacing must be four nautical miles and 175 seconds apart.
“It may not sound like a lot,” Domino said, “but when you look at tens of thousands of operations over a year, it adds time to the airlines and takes a slot from additional commercial aircraft operations.”
Domino noted that many of the hangars for smaller aircraft at the international airport are older and may need to be replaced soon. He said it may be wise to replace them with larger hangars for corporate jets - noting that they fit in better with busy operations and high aircraft speeds than smaller planes.
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Information from: The Salt Lake Tribune, http://www.sltrib.com
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