Setting out to work at this thriving city-owned airport represented the first step on the aviation ladder for Foster. It also served as a career move that he made right out of college. Full throttle to today, Foster still holds the same degree of excitement and love for the airport and the role that he plays. “I graduated from high school here in Elko, Nevada, and ended up moving to Boise, Idaho, to go to school. With family ties back home, I moved back and put in an application for a seasonal job with the City of Elko, not knowing anything about aviation,” Foster begins. “I caught the aviation bug pretty young,” he reflects. “After around two years, I was offered a full-time position. From there, I did another two years and got into the operations and maintenance side of the house, which I did for approximately 15 years. After so many years learning about the ins and outs of airport operations, maintenance, and other areas of aviation, Foster increased his knowledge base further by taking as many classes as time would permit. Advanced study paid off, and Foster was offered the Assistant Manager position with Elko Regional.After just a year in this new position, as fate would have it, the Airport Manager position opened up, and Foster wasted no time applying. “I was hired for that position in 2017 and have held the Airport Manager position ever since,” he relays. Excited about the airport’s potential and the continued role he can play, Foster has ensured future success by prioritizing aviation-related projects to be completed over the next few years that will steer the airport down the right aviation path. With a clear focus on a master capital infrastructure plan, Foster is prioritizing work to be done around the airport and also turning his attention to business attraction in and around the airport on lands that are available to lease. THE AIRPORT AND THE CITY BEHIND IT Foster is well aware that Elko Regional Airport is, for many, the first impression they may have of Elko and the surrounding region as they fly in. It is for this reason that Foster is quick to point out the assets that the city boasts, while he is hard at work to facilitate airport initiatives to help align with local tourist and business growth potential. “Elko Regional Airport is a commercial service, part 139 certified airport located in Northwestern Nevada,” he describes. “We have two runways, with one of those runways being our main commercial runway at 7457 feet long. The other runway is 3012 feet long.” 169 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 12, ISSUE 08 ELKO REGIONAL AIRPORT
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