Business View Magazine | Volume 9, Issue 2

142 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 2 Fordham Aviation Inc.; KENCOA Aerospace LLC; AREMAC Heat Treating who collectively service, manufacture, heat treat and surface engines and parts for Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed-Martin, Gulfstream, and Sikorsky. Then there are the private owners. “The runway project will get started late summer, and we are trying to get everything ready so that we can start construction and then reduce the impact on the University and other users,” says Fordham. “I believe we would have up to eight days before they would need a contingency plan – we would like to work with everyone, including the FAA, to minimize any problems that we might cause. It would be a lot easier if the school did not have to switch its flights to Macon and then bus all the students up there. But we will see what happens.” The university currently accounts for about 85% of the airport traffic. Fordham reports, “We have probably more than 400 operations daily, and that is including corporate, military, and general aviation. We also have an air ambulance service that flies out of here. Georgia Forestry has an operation base here as well, and they fly out daily. All of which means a lot of use, and right now the tower is only open during school hours.” Monday to Thursday 8 A.M. to 4 P.M. and on Friday 8 A.M. to 12 P.M., to be more precise. Not only is the tower just open during these times, but it is also staffed by the University, not the airport or the FAA. The airport is therefore also going after funding to have the FAA take over running the tower – to relieve the financial burden for the school and, more importantly, increase the working hours of the runway, by running the tower 24/7. While there are 80 planes housed at the Heart of Georgia Regional Airport, there are less than 80 hangar spaces available. So, another portion of the planned upgrades includes more hangar space. The university is building some, but the