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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-05-1991.Airport Fire Safety Issue Heating UpDani Airport fire safety issue heating up By Mark Buss Staff Willer A major fine last weekend that destroyed Iwo buildings in Scott City's irdustrlai park points out the need for improved wmar service for that area and the nearby Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport, said Airport Manager Mark Seesing. The mdtsuhd tract is on the cast side of Interstate 55, across the in- terstate book the Cape Girardeau airpon. Firefighters were hampered in battling the blue because of a lack Of an adequate water supply. Cur- rently, several businesses ban small wells, which we inadequate fur Ceeti protecm, fire Officials sad in the a tcmwh of the blaze. "As proven over the weekend. they aro in serious reed of Cue Pt tectton." Seesing bio members, 000f the Apo ' Advisory nesday. Hut he added that the airport, which is curved Bywater wells, has an inadequa supply icard$ m fire protection. We have no protection here right now." said Sewing. He said k would be difCu:ult to fight a major fire at the airport without abetter supply of water. it officials want to install a They planem to W o Ytater this airport. for $450,000 m ederal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding to v Seeing said. "Were looking at a few altemadivVs (for improving the ,„n,,a�iemsuve would be to drill a shallow well said pump the water into a stowge tank for use m the event of a Cue. Seesmg sod such water would not be suitable for drinking without bang rail through a "ifly other�ibi�ye"aid be to tie into Scott City's water system' "Scott City is euffe* Pnt�ga water line on she east s oftln* tersmt , We are working with tXIII iin fa rim the Possibility of tying r line!! carve the industrial Pack _ _ _.e v nniv davS befohe the dvIenasoother -,nuas at Wednesday's ednesday's meeing of the airport board. Sols - for the Cost half ,.r :n Airport �. Tbb -City stands to lose $300,000 in annual entitlements from the FAA if the boardings fall below 10,000 for the year. City officials have said it's unlikely that board- inFs will reach the 10,000 plateau. Its looking grimmer and grim- mer as time goes on," said Sewing. I reallX;don't know what we can do to reverse that." - For June, there were 670 board- ings at the airport, well short of the 912 recorded during the same peri- od last year. For the fast six months of the Year, then; have been 3,898 board- ings, 934 fewer than the 4,832 boardings during the same period last year, airport usage figures show. Trans World Express (TWE), the commuter airline serving Cape Girardeau, handled 2,414 boardings from January through June this year. compared to 3.076 during the some period lest year. Cape Central Airways, a fixed base operation that includes charter and freight service, had 978 board- ings for the first six months of this year, compared to 1,117 for the same period last year. Procter and Gamble's shuttle ser- Fnvrn Page 1 vice had 506 boardings for the fust Taking off six months compared to 639 for the fust half of last year. Mark Spatz, fight, who recently purchissed Board Looking on, aro board members Jams* It's been slow," sold Sewing. Cape Central Airways, the fixed base Opera- Bowman, left, and Steve Hasler. Spate moved "It's been slow on everybody (m lion at the Cape Girardeau Municipal Airport, to Cape Girardeau from Magnolia, Ark. (Photo the airline industry)." sits In on a session of the Airport Advisory by Fred Lynch) Business bevel accounts for most Unfortunately, he said, declining tine," said Sewing. "I think it is a nificant changes will be made in of tie hoardings at the Cape Girar- deau airport. But with tough firtee economically, businesses have cut brck on air travel, Sewing said. He said that canceled and delayed TWE flights have added to the boarding problem. He said air travelers want dependable. on-time service. .In talking with travel agents, they're apprehensive about book- ings out of Cape Girardeau." the airport manager said. hoardings make it mac difficult N trying m attract another commuter airline m Cape Gvardeau. "Hopefully," he remarked. "they can look though the smoke a bit and see there is a possibility." Sewing and other city officials have been trying to interest Lone Star Airlines, headquartered in Dallas -Fort Wath, in serving the Cape Girardeau airport. It's a very, very promising air. I good airline." He said Lone Star officials have esprwsed some interest in provid- ing air service to Cape Girardeau. Lone Star serves cities in Texas, Arkansas, Indiana and Tennessee. In other business, Mark Spatz, the new owner of Cape Central Air- ways, met briefly with the airport Spatz, 28, is originally from Arkansas. He now lives in Cape Girardeau. He said some "cosmetic changes" will be made to the Cape Central Airways building, but that no Sig - the operation of the business and existing personnel will be retained. "We have a real good crew of folks over there," he said. Reggie Hopwood, the previous owner of Cape. Central Airways, operates River City Aviation. Spatz said Hopwood and River City Aviation, which owns four planes. "will be intimately in- volved" in operations at the auporL Spatz avid he has no intention of toning Cape Central Airways into a commuter airline. "We don't want to be in the airline business."