Eglin AFB wants to kick out VPS airport from Ft Walton

[hnooe]

I always found it very odd having a civilian airport in the same ground space and sharing the same air space as an Airforce Base. Is this the only place this type of co-existence happens in the US or elsewhere?. IMO, I would think it would be a big security risk for the Airforce Base.

 

[Smiling JOe]

Thanks for posting that article link, 30ashopper.

From the article:
...Arnold (Valparaiso Mayor) said he opposed the use of Eglin's north-south runway by the new F-35 jets. He suggested a new runway be built if Eglin insisted on the need for the runway. He equated the cost of a new runway to the cost of a new F-35.

"We're not in the position to dictate to the Air Force," said Arnold. "We just want to sit at the table. We feel that there are other things that could be done that will abate this problem."...

 

[Will B]

Here ya go:

http://www.sowal.com/bb/showthread.php?t=19171&highlight=okaloosa+regional

Thanks for digging that up. I saw the thread title and thought, "Good Lord...I'm going to have to let this thread cook for a whole day before I can get home and repost the email from Jerry Sealy."

I was cleaning email, the other day, and saw that message and figured I'd better sit on it a while longer! Good plan!

 

[Will B]

I always found it very odd having a civilian airport in the same ground space and sharing the same air space as an Airforce Base. Is this the only place this type of co-existence happens in the US or elsewhere?. IMO, I would think it would be a big security risk for the Airforce Base.

It's actually fairly common to have shared use airports...

 

[scooterbug44]

Several airports I frequently fly through share w/ the military - not just small regional ones either! Since non-staff aren't supposed to be on the runways etc. and they are usually far removed from the commercial terminals I don't think it's a big security issue.

I went to a wedding at the base at the Minneapolis St. Paul airport - full security (my cab wasn't allowed past the gate and other guests got in trouble for having cameras near the flight line) but they used the same runways.

The article is talking about the civilians wanted a new runway because of noise/the crash zone, not because there isn't space for both the commercial and military flights.

 

[ckhagen]

Eglin would have a bunch of pretty frustrated employees if they allowed that to take place...
A very, very good portion of the air traffic in and out of VPS is AF employees (commercial flights, civil servants). My MIL and FIL fly out of there on pretty much a weekly basis for AF related work.

 

[beachmouse]

I always found it very odd having a civilian airport in the same ground space and sharing the same air space as an Airforce Base. Is this the only place this type of co-existence happens in the US or elsewhere?. IMO, I would think it would be a big security risk for the Airforce Base.

The only things the civilian side and military side use in common are the runways and air traffic control, and there's no way for civilians to get to the AF part of the complex. At VPS, getting to the civilian commercial terminal from the runways requires an aircraft to taxi for 7-10 minutes along access roads. (Which is decidedly not fun at the end of a flight when you have to really pee)

 

[scooterbug44]

Was just told there is ABSOLUTELY ZERO truth to the rumor!

 

[30ashopper]

The only things the civilian side and military side use in common are the runways and air traffic control, and there's no way for civilians to get to the AF part of the complex. At VPS, getting to the civilian commercial terminal from the runways requires an aircraft to taxi for 7-10 minutes along access roads. (Which is decidedly not fun at the end of a flight when you have to really pee)

I love landing at Eglin. Those long runways that let the pilots just slowly float in at their leisure.. I feel safer landing at Eglin than at any other airport in the country.

 

[30ashopper]

This is off topic, but this thread reminded me of Eglin and the area right after September 11th. I wasn't working at the time and so I spent every day at one of the community pools in Sandestin. I was the only guy there for weeks, all through Sept. and Oct. until it got cold. Eglin was bringing commercial flights in low over the bay on the east-west runway, and every flight had a two fighter jet escort right behind them. I remember sitting there watching them fly in all day long. It seems odd to say but those were very peaceful times considering what was going on in the world. I really fell in love with the idea of being near a major air force air strip after that.