Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 9

193 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 9 A . L . MANGHAM JR . REGIONAL A I RPORT region, the city wants to capitalize on a great opportunity. “The development of the I-69, which links Houston to Northern Texas and on to Arkansas, has spurred the city to implement a project to construct a new terminal area and upgrade the airport,” says Airport Manager Joe Cefalu. Currently, the airport is its own Fixed Base Operator (FBO) and is owned and operated by the city.. Originally activated in April 1944, the airport has one asphalt runway, 18-36, which is 5000 ft long and 75 ft wide, allowing larger aircraft like private Boeing 737s to land. However, the majority of the traffic is made up of Falcons and Learjets. Approximately 75 aircraft are currently based at A.L. Mangham Jr. Regional Airport. “Most of our visitors are from corporations who use NetJets and Flexjets to transport executives from the companies located in the city to their required destinations,” says Cefalu. “We also do business with the military who require fuel and food supplies.” During 2020, businesses had to pivot and adapt to COVID-19, and many halted operations. That being said, like other smaller airports, A.L. Mangham Jr. Regional Airport stayed in operation throughout the lockdown stage. At first, operations were limited but for the most part the maintenance staff carried on with their duties. However, in a relatively short time traffic started to pick up with medical flights and helicopters, as well as civil air patrol, who were transporting blood samples to the labs for testing. The military also stepped up their standard regular visits to drop off supplies. This change in traffic meant that the airport did see more business than they originally anticipated. As a result, they were able to maintain financial stability during tough times. Currently, all the aircraft and hangars are privately owned. The facility does have a number of service offerings, including fuel services and Ground Power Unit (GPU) services for larger