By Jamie Gardner
How busy do you think the Baxley airport is on a weekly basis? Three or four, maybe five planes? Believe it or not, the airport sees as many as 20 to 30 airplanes per week. Many pilots have discovered that Baxley’s low fuel prices and convenience make it an ideal stop. Last April, usually the airport’s busiest month of the year due to an event held in Lakeland, Florida called Sun’n Fun, the airport sold approximately 16,000 gallons of fuel.
BAXLEY AIRPORT’S NEW TERMINAL BUILDING THAT WILL BE COMPLETE SOON. PHOTO SUBMITTED BY TYLER BEACH, BAXLEY AIRPORT MANAGER.
Airport getting an extreme makeover
To better accommodate the growing demand of the airport, the City of Baxley has been planning to make some needed changes to the facility for a number of years. The city has already updated hangars, expanded the runway and made the current terminal building as comfortable as possible for visitors, even though the current terminal is small and was built in 1969. However, the Baxley airport is just a few months away from having one of the best small airport terminals in the area, if not the country.
According to Baxley Airport Manager Tyler Beach, the new terminal building will be a state-of-the-art two-story facility. It will feature a southern-style home exterior and interior.
“The terminal will be a great first impression to all pilots and passengers that are welcomed to the City of Baxley,” said Beach.
On the first floor of the new terminal guests will find an inviting lobby, which will have seating and an entertainment center. The west side of the first floor will house the management office and clerk’s window that will display merchandise such as aviation oil, flight sectionals, and other merchandise. It will also contain the radio communications for communication between ground staff and pilots. The east side will have a conference room with the latest technology to hold and display presentations. On the south side visitors will find a break area with vending as well as a kitchen area with storage. The first floor will have restroom facilities and the entire building will have WiFi to allow visitors and pilots to connect to the Internet.
The second floor of the building will contain pilot loft where pilots can get away from the lobby downstairs, or if a meeting is being held downstairs. Pilots can access weather radar and forecasts, flight planning or use the Internet on a flight planning workstation. On the east and west side of the pilot loft area there are sleeping quarters for overnight pilots only. Each sleeping quarter has a separate bathroom and shower.
The funds to construct the new terminal are coming from the 2006 countywide Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST). Baxley City Manager Jeff Baxley expressed his gratitude to the citizens of Baxley and Appling County for recognizing the need for this type of facility when they approved the 2006 SPLOST.
Baxley and Beach also shared that the city has received an estimated $980,000.00 Federal Grant, administered by the Georgia Department of Transportation, which will be used to make additional changes to the airport. These changes include a 300 ft. ramp expansion to the existing ramp, the relocation of the deep well at the facility, the replacement and relocation of the mechanical/electrical vault, changes to the airport’s entrance roadway to the new terminal and demolition of the old terminal building. The city will have to match two and a half percent of the grant.
According to Baxley Airport Manager Tyler Beach, the new terminal building will be a state-of-the-art two-story facility. It will feature a southern-style home exterior and interior.
“The terminal will be a great first impression to all pilots and passengers that are welcomed to the City of Baxley,” said Beach.
On the first floor of the new terminal guests will find an inviting lobby, which will have seating and an entertainment center. The west side of the first floor will house the management office and clerk’s window that will display merchandise such as aviation oil, flight sectionals, and other merchandise. It will also contain the radio communications for communication between ground staff and pilots. The east side will have a conference room with the latest technology to hold and display presentations. On the south side visitors will find a break area with vending as well as a kitchen area with storage. The first floor will have restroom facilities and the entire building will have WiFi to allow visitors and pilots to connect to the Internet.
The second floor of the building will contain pilot loft where pilots can get away from the lobby downstairs, or if a meeting is being held downstairs. Pilots can access weather radar and forecasts, flight planning or use the Internet on a flight planning workstation. On the east and west side of the pilot loft area there are sleeping quarters for overnight pilots only. Each sleeping quarter has a separate bathroom and shower.
The funds to construct the new terminal are coming from the 2006 countywide Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST). Baxley City Manager Jeff Baxley expressed his gratitude to the citizens of Baxley and Appling County for recognizing the need for this type of facility when they approved the 2006 SPLOST.
Baxley and Beach also shared that the city has received an estimated $980,000.00 Federal Grant, administered by the Georgia Department of Transportation, which will be used to make additional changes to the airport. These changes include a 300 ft. ramp expansion to the existing ramp, the relocation of the deep well at the facility, the replacement and relocation of the mechanical/electrical vault, changes to the airport’s entrance roadway to the new terminal and demolition of the old terminal building. The city will have to match two and a half percent of the grant.
Trackbacks
Trackback specific URI for this entry
No Trackbacks