Project Will Add 500 Feet To Main Runway, Improve
Approaches
Sussex County, Delaware has received a grant totally $723,900
from the FAA for the extension of the main runway at Sussex County
Airport (KGED) in Georgetown.
U.S. Senators Tom Carper (left) and Chris Coons
(right) (both D-DE) announced the grant late last week. The
money will provide engineering and design funding for a project to
extend the runway 500 feet to 5,500 feet, improve approaches and
lighting, and bring it up to FAA standards.
The Sussex County Airport is a GA facility serving Georgetown and
Sussex County, and is owned by Sussex County Council. The airport
has two paved runways. Currently, the longest runway is 5,000 feet
and accommodates private aircraft and planes up to the size of a
Boeing 737. This runway extension will allow the airport to
accommodate larger planes, ensure safe operation in varying
conditions and attract more aeronautical-based businesses to Sussex
County.
Sen. Carper has been leading the effort to secure the approvals
for this project that has the potential to bring more business and
jobs to the local economy. "Receiving the funding from the Federal
Aviation Administration is the first step in securing the future
for the Sussex County Airport," said Sen. Carper. "The airport will
be able to accommodate larger planes and therefore bring in more
business and job opportunities to Sussex County. That is just the
kind of project we should be focusing our attention on right now as
we strive to put Delawareans back to work. I always say that the
role of government is to provide a nurturing environment for job
creation, and infrastructure development like this is a great
example of government working to do just that."
"Businesses are drawn to regions with well maintained, highly
integrated transportation infrastructure," said Sen. Coons.
"Delaware is known for its ports, railroads, and highway system to
quickly transport commodities and now, thanks to the Federal
Aviation Administration funding, Sussex County Airport will be
better equipped to accommodate large aircraft able to draw new
business and jobs to the area. This funding gets to the heart of
one of my key priorities for accelerating our nation's economic
recovery: investing in America's infrastructure, which will not
only strengthen our long-term global competitiveness, but also
creates good jobs for Americans."
"The additional runway length will provide our current large
aircraft operators additional range and payload options, as well as
an added margin of safety," said Airport Manager Jim Hickin.
"The County appreciates this support as we move forward with
this phase of the project which supports our goal to enable
businesses at our airport to expand," said Sussex County
Administrator David Baker.
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