Construction Continuation of Long-Term Expansion

Manchester-Boston Regional Airport will be closing its secondary runway this summer, for the second year in a row, for lengthening construction as part of the facility's long-term expansion plans.

This is good news for the airport, which had to stall that expansion last year due to a decrease in passenger activity, as ANN reported.

A strong New Hampshire economy, high demand for an easy-access local airport, and a growing population with disposable income will likely keep the market strong, MHT Airport Director Kevin Dillon and state economic experts say, even if Manchester does see a second year of slowed growth.

"There is nothing that has changed dramatically for Manchester," said Robert Shumsky, an associate professor at Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business who studies airline operations. "The population is still there, the demand is more or less still there. I think they'll hold steady and slowly increase."

A study conducted in the fall of 2006 by the New England Airport Coalition predicted Manchester airport will see between 3.3 percent and 5.5 percent average annual growth over the next decade.

Expansion work will be covered in part by $21 million in Federal Aviation Administration grants, according to the Nashua, NH, Telegraph.

According to announcements from Senators Judd Gregg and John Sununu, $2.5 million was added to the pot to continue a 14-year-old program of providing sound insulation to nearby homes in Manchester and Londonderry.

Roughly 1,600 of those homes are eligible for the insulation program, said J. Brian O'Neil, spokesman for the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport.

O'Neil said more than 900 houses have already had work done, which can sometimes include new windows and doors, ceiling and wall modifications. There are cases where even air conditioning is installed so that windows can be kept closed during busy flight periods.

Included in the FAA grants is $18 million to extend the safety areas at each end of the runway. The east-west runway, 6/24, is the smaller of MHT's two runways is currently 7,000 feet long. It was closed last year to create an extension at the west end. The work will be repeated this year on the east end.

The FAA grants also include $3.3 million to finish upgrades to taxiways and navigation aids.

The main runway, 17/35, is 9,250 feet long. In 2003, it was lengthened by a half-mile during the first phase of the airport expansion.

FMI: www.flymanchester.com