Airport scheduled for completion in September
Aug. 21—GREENSBURG — The new runway at the Greensburg Municipal Airport is nearly complete, with a grand opening scheduled for mid-September.
All that's left to do before the event is the installation of runway lighting, some last minute grading and grass planting, and joining the old construction with the new.
In addition, to allow for water to drain from the surface of the runway, grooves must still be cut into the asphalt side to side for its entire length.
Project Supervisor for the engineering company BF&S John Clair said this has not been a typical build.
"To get the Greensburg Airport project off the ground, we had to move a lot of dirt, and most of it was wet dirt," he said.
The land involved in building the new runway featured countless irregularities that had to be graded out. Dirt had to be rearranged and then compacted to create a flat plane that tilted toward the southeast corner.
Drainage pipe had to be installed underneath and on both sides of the newly created plane that drained the area off toward Muddy Fork Creek.
The old runway was 3,433 x 40 feet when first paved in 1980. It worked well for the crop-dusters and the occasional private planes for which it was designed.
Growth in Greensburg's industry and commerce requires a larger runway that can accommodate industrial jets and cargo planes, which was the primary reason for the expansion effort.
The finished runway is 5,405 by 100 feet. The old runway will remain in service for taxiing, and there will be new hangers built along its length.
Contact Bill Rethlake at 812-651-0876 or email bill.rethlake@greensburgdailynews.com
