Sound Skies Newsletter, November 2015 Seasons Greetings From the Pierce County Public Works Airport and Ferry Division. Facebook Page Follow us on our airport Facebook page at facebook.com/pierce- countyairports. Photo Credit: Erik Utter An airport recap and look ahead By Deb Wallace Narrows Airport for the Championship, which Pierce County Public Works Airport took place at the Chambers Bay Golf Course and Ferry Administrator in University Place from June 15-21. 2015 shaped up to be a good year for the The community had the chance to Pierce County Airports. experience the airport in a new way when they watched golfers arrive or viewed their Operations were up, fuel sales increased, jets sitting on the tarmac from the new About Sound Skies paving work was completed at both airport observation area - officially known as Sound Skies is produced airports, and we had great flying weather the Rotary Aviation Zone or RAZ. The new quarterly by the Pierce County here in the Northwest. zone opened on June 3. Public Works Airport and Ferry Division. It features information Operations at Tacoma Narrows Airport It was exciting for visitors to see the aircraft about Pierce County Airport- Thun Field (PLU) in Puyallup grew; the tower count may well number and try to guess which player owned them and Tacoma Narrows Airport over 70,000 operations for the year - a based on the letters in the tail numbers. (TIW) in Gig Harbor. significant increase over the 42,600 They were also able to listen to tower operations in 2013. communications on the speaker installed in Email [email protected] the RAZ. to receive Sound Skies via email. Pierce County will complete a traffic count for Pierce County Airport-Thun Field in The RAZ provides a visible entryway that 2016 to determine a base measure of invites the public to experience aviation. annual operations at the airport. This And its neighbor, The Hub at Gig Harbor, airport does not have a control tower to is a natural next stop for people hoping to Contact Us count operations. continue the experience. Deb Wallace, Airport and Ferry Administrator, (253) 798-7109 June 2015 featured the largest gathering The Hub has become a destination [email protected] of people in Pierce County ever recorded restaurant for pilots and the public alike, during the U.S. Open Championship when offering a great dining experience, music PLU: (253) 841-3779 the area was alive with golf aficionados. and a front-row view of flight operations from TIW: (253) 853-5844 their dining space. Many top golfers flew into Tacoma Continued on page 4 New location for Thun Field airport office Pierce County would like to welcome visitors to the new Thun Field airport office located in the Civil Air Patrol building. Pierce County moved into the new space in October. The building is located at 16915 103rd Ave. Ct E in Puyallup. The new space includes an office for airport staff and conference room space for meetings such as the Thun Field Advisory Commission and Washington State Department of Transportation search and rescue activities. Public bathrooms are also available. “The new office provides a more accessible and visible facility to welcome tenants and the community,” said Deb Wallace, Pierce County Public Works airport and ferry The Pierce County Weed Board and the airport will make administrator. “We value our expanded partnership approximately $100,000 in improvements to the building’s with the Civil Air Patrol.” heating system, plumbing, and electrical systems, among other improvements. Pierce County’s previous office building has been rented by the Pierce County Weed Control Board. Welcome to Cindy Willis Santa’sSmoky coming sunrise to at Thun Thun Field Field We are delighted to welcome Cindy Willis as the Pierce County Public Works Airport and Ferry Division’s new office assistant. Cindy will assist with airport and ferry customer communications, events, and airport advisory commission support and promotion, as well as various administrative projects. Cindy spent 12 years as the assistant to former Pierce Spencer Aircraft’s Annual Santa Fly-in is back from 10 a.m. County Councilmembers Stan Flemming and Terry Lee. to 1 p.m. on Dec. 12 at Pierce County Airport-Thun Field. She also was a clerk and administrative assistant at Pierce Santa will land right at 10 a.m. County Planning and Land Services for over 18 years. He will be on hand for photos and candy canes will be Cindy will be located at the division’s Tacoma office. served. Her email is [email protected]. Get updates at www.spenceraircraft.com under the “Events” page, or on Spencer Aircraft’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/SpencerAircraft. County assessing wildlife hazards at Tacoma Narrows Airport An assessment of potential wildlife hazards for aircraft and airport operations at Tacoma Narrows Airport began in October. Pierce County is conducting the Wildlife Hazard Assessment to identify species creating hazards, whether there are natural or artificial elements attracting wildlife to the airport, and trends in how and when wildlife are using the airport grounds and airspace. WHPacific, Pierce County’s consultant for the assessment, will also evaluate the overall risk of wildlife/aircraft strikes. A field biologist will continue to conduct surveys in the morning, afternoon and evening twice a month through October 2016. In addition, a nighttime spotlight survey will be completed once a month. activities and procedures necessary to minimize wildlife The consultant will review airport wildlife management impacts to airport operations. A draft of this plan would protocols, map general habitat types near the airport take 60 days to develop. environs and attractants on and around the airfield, and analyze bird strike and wildlife activity data in association The assessment and plan are funded with a $44,487 with the airport and adjoining lands. grant from the FAA, $2,471 from the Washington State Department of Transportation, and $2,472 in Real Estate Once the assessment is complete, a report will be Excise Taxes dedicated to the airports. developed within 90 days, and submitted for approval to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). WHPacific has also been conducting a Wildlife Hazard Assessment at Pierce County Airport-Thun Field on If warranted by the assessment, a Wildlife Hazard Pierce County’s behalf since January. The assessment is Management Plan will be developed that outlines site expected to be complete in December. management, land use, operations, and maintenance TIW pavement work complete Work to seal pavement cracks and replace markings at Tacoma Narrows Airport was completed in September. New wind socks coming soon New wind socks will be installed on both ends of the Crews sealed pavement cracks on the north half of TIW runway in mid-November. Taxiway A, the connector taxiways, and the north apron. The north apron was also fog sealed to fill narrow cracks, installation of a new 20-foot emergency access gate on the provide a black pavement surface color, and preserve west side of the airport at 8th Street Northwest. the underlying pavement structure. Markings such as centerlines and tie down markings were also replaced. The gate projects were completed in May. The contractor for the project was Harlow Construction. The project was funded with a Federal Aviation The construction cost was approximately $365,000. Administration Airport Improvement Program Grant, an Airport Aid Program Grant from Washington State This cost also included the replacement of the airport’s Department of Transportation Aviation, and Real Estate North Gate with a 24-foot automated vehicle gate and the Excise Taxes dedicated to the airports. Sound Skies Newsletter, November 2015 Thun Field pavement project complete Work to fill pavement cracks and replace signage and markings at Pierce County Airport-Thun Field was completed in October. Crews sealed pavement cracks on the airport’s runway, taxiway, and connector taxiways. Markings such as centerlines and runway numbers were replaced. The contractor for the project was C.R. Contracting. The construction cost was approximately $175,000. The project was funded with grants from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Washington State Department of Transportation, as well as Real Estate Excise Taxes dedicated to the airports. Runway number changed to 35/17 In January, the FAA advised Pierce County that Thun Field’s magnetic variation (MAG VAR) was out of tolerance. In this case, “X” marked the closure. Several runway Thun Field was 19 E, which was the 1995 value. The 2020 closures were needed during the pavement project. value is 15 E. This pavement and marking project allowed for a great opportunity to renumber the runway to 35/17 to align with the new MAG VAR of 15 E. The new runway numbers of 35/17 were reflected in the Oct. 15, 2015 FAA publication cycle. Recap, continued from Page 1 The challenge for Pierce County, the Friends of Tacoma Narrows Airport (FOTNA) and other lovers of aviation is how to light the spark of those touched by aviation into active participation that can easily become a lifelong passion. In 2016, Pierce County will focus on Pierce County Airport-Thun Field in a significant way. Airport customers, the public and aviation partners will be invited to participate in the update of the airport’s Master Plan. The community has grown up around Pierce County Airport-Thun Field, presenting challenges and opportunities. Thank you for a great year at the Pierce County Airports. A significant goal of the Master Plan will be to engage the public to encourage their ownership in this important The Public Works Airport and Ferry Division can’t wait community asset.