Rental Aircraft Down After Catching Undercarriage On Blast Fence During Final Approach

A long-running debate over the installation of a "safety zone" at the northeast end of Sikorsky Memorial Airport (KBDR) in Bridgeport, CT has been re-ignited following an accident at the airport Saturday night.

The pilot his wife were in a PA-32 Cherokee, which they had rented from Three-Wings Flying Service of Stratford for the flight. Its landing gear reportedly struck a blast fence at the end of the runway on final approach which detached one of the airplanes wings. It skidded down the runway and caught fire. Both the pilot, Paul Sward, and his wife Roxanne were injured in the accident but survived.

The blast fence has reportedly been hit by airplanes on approach at least four times in the past 17 years, according to the Connecticut Post. The FAA has approved plans for the removal of the blast fence, which protects traffic on a nearby street from jet blast, and replacing it with a 100 yard overrun area made of a collapsible material. It would serve as an emergency braking system should an airplane overrun the runway. The plan would also require moving Main Street and its underlying infrastructure, which has been stridently opposed by the town of Stratford and environmental groups which say the plan would allow larger, "noisier" aircraft to take off and land at Sikorsky Memorial. Federal funding is in place for the upgrade.

FAA officials say the runway, which has not been upgraded since 1982, is safe, but no longer complies with the agency's standards. Bridgeport Mayor Bill Flinch told the paper that the safety area would not lengthen the runway "one inch," and that while they don't want to force the issue, "we've got to get it done."

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.sikorskymemorialairport.com