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in Virginia.
The runway, which currently measures 5,000 square feet, will expand by 1,000 square feet by October 2020, according to airport manager Edward Wallis.
Once completed, planes will be able to make longer trips from the 18-year-old airport, he said.
鈥淲e鈥檒l be able to go nonstop to California, nonstop overseas,鈥� Wallis said.
The expansion doesn鈥檛 mean that larger aircraft will be taking off at the facility 鈥� larger planes typically need at least 8,000 feet of runway. Instead, this will mean planes of the size that currently use the airport will be able to carry more than currently allowed, Wallis said.
鈥淎ircraft that use our facility now will be able to leave fully loaded with passengers and fuel,鈥� he said.
LANDING THE DEAL
The expansion itself is more than 10 years in the making, with work beginning on the effort back in 2007 when the Airport Authority made the request to the FAA.
鈥淚t took about as long to add 1,000 feet as it did to build the original airport,鈥� Wallis said.
The expansion request prompted a review of the airport鈥檚 master plan, which took several years to complete. Researchers found that the airport could support a runway expansion because of its traffic count and several other factors, Wallis said. The facility logs 29,000 takeoffs and landings annually, he said.
The FAA threw its support behind the expansion in January 2018. The project is currently in the design phase. While construction is taking place, the runway will lose about 500 feet, Wallis said.
The expansion itself is expected to cost around $10 million. The FAA will pick up 90 percent of the tab, with the state Department of Aviation and the local airport authority covering the rest.
The FAA funds come from a small tax on airline tickets, Wallis said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not coming from our income taxes,鈥� he said. 鈥淯nless you buy an airline ticket, none of your money is invested on this.鈥�
CATCHING FLIGHTS
The expansion will make the airport a magnet that attracts businesses to Stafford who want to establish operations here, Wallis predicted.
鈥淭hat makes us one of those magnets for people to come into D.C. from California say this is the place to base my business,鈥� Wallis said.
That could mean high-paying jobs in the area if corporate executives decide to settle a business in Stafford.
A hub for business aviation, Stafford Regional Airport is also used by the military and celebrities who don鈥檛 want to have to make their way through more crowded facilities in Washington, Baltimore and Richmond, Wallis said.
Business aviation itself works on a very specific model, he explained.
鈥淚f you鈥檙e going to fly commercial, you鈥檝e got to drive to the airport. You鈥檙e sitting on the plane with a bunch of other people,鈥� he added. 鈥淵ou really can鈥檛 have conversations, a business meeting.鈥�
In business aviation, whoever is using the aircraft 鈥渋s diving straight out to the airport, boards the aircraft and he is done,鈥� Wallis said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 not waiting on the plane, the plane is waiting on him.鈥�
Stafford Regional also plays an important role in commercial aviation, he said.
鈥淲e take corporate aircraft out of the Baltimore-Dulles-National-Richmond airspace,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e relieve pressure on those airports.鈥�
The airport is one of the county鈥檚 undiscovered gems and hosts numerous community and social events throughout the year, Wallis said.
鈥淧eople who鈥檝e lived in Stafford for 12 or 18 years say they didn鈥檛 know this airport was here,鈥� he said.
