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| By Carmelo Turdo |
Airport Operations
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The Aero Experience visited with Airport Director Daniel Adams and Assistant Director Drake Blackwell at the airport administrative offices to get an update on airport operations. They were quick to mention that St. Louis Regional Airport was designated as the 2024 Reliever Airport of the Year by the Illinois Department of Transportation Division of Aeronautics at the Illinois Public Airport Association fall conference held last October. Cited in the award were $8.5M in airport infrastructure improvements, West Star's new $20M hangar addition and Piston Aviation's contribution to a significant increase in aircraft operations over the previous twelve-month reporting period.
Reliever airports are designated by the Secretary of Transportation to absorb traffic from commercial service airports as well as provide access for general aviation. Reliever airports do not host scheduled commercial airline service, but they are often served by air charters and provide the infrastructure for significant aerospace industry facilities that support the regional economy. This recognition as Reliever Airport of the Year is well deserved!
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Along with Adams and Blackwell, there are nine other full-time airport employees - seven cross-trained maintenance technicians/firefighters providing 24/7 emergency services coverage and two administrative professionals. The airport is operated by the St. Louis Regional Airport Authority, supported by the taxing districts of the region - Bethalto, Wood River, East Alton, Alton and Madison County. A board of seven commissioners is appointed from those five different governmental bodies. Adams and Blackwell have developed a strong and successful relationship with the Airport Authority, and together they have accomplished much over the last year. (Snowplow in action photo courtesy of the Airport Authority).
St. Louis Regional Airport currently serves general aviation and corporate customers, providing over 1,500 jobs and generating an economic impact of $480M. Runways 11/29 (8,100' x 150') and 17/35 (6,500' x 100') can accommodate most types of civilian and military aircraft. Over one hundred T-hangars are full with a waiting list. The Piasa Flyers Aero Club and EAA Chapter 864 are very active, and an aerobatic box is available when coordinated with air traffic control. The airport's largest tenant is West Star Aviation, who recently expanded their aircraft maintenance and overhaul complex. In March of 2024, flight training returned to the airport with the arrival of Piston Aviation.
One performance indicator, aircraft operations (takeoffs and landings), dramatically increased from 2023 to 2024. "Our 2024 aircraft operations count was 40,138, an increase of 11,862 over the previous year," Adams told The Aero Experience. "This increase is attributed to a variety of sources, including additional West Star customers, T-hangar tenant activity, and the creation of the Piasa Flyers Aero Club. But primarily, the increase is from the flight training brought in by Piston Aviation and visiting flight school aircraft from local airports." Adams added that 2024 was the busiest year in terms of aircraft operations since 2009, and October 2024 was the busiest single month of the year, with 4,691 operations, and the busiest single month since 2009.
Airport Development
Over the last 18 months, St. Louis Regional Airport has completed several high-value airport development projects to improve operational safety and customer experience. The $5.5M Runway 17/35 rehab project, including new asphalt, markings, and LED lighting, was completed in September of 2023. An $800K T-hangar apron project - replacing much of the asphalt and improving drainage - was completed last October. Three public parking lots (10k square yards) were also repaved in 2024 as part of a $1M Rebuild Illinois project. A Taxiway Bravo reconstruction project is now in the design stage, replacing 1,200 feet of asphalt with concrete and costing about $2M including federal and state funding. Updates to the fuel farm are also being incorporated into the airport's development plan.
The most noticeable airport development project at the airport is yet to come in 2025/2026. The FAA has chosen St. Louis Regional Airport as one of the first 31 recipients of the new Sustainable ATC Tower Design for regional airports. The scalable tower was chosen by the FAA in April of 2023, and those qualifying airports with towers operating at the end of their projected life span will soon break ground on their new facilities. St. Louis Regional Airport hosts a contract air traffic control service with specified hours, and the controllers are looking forward to working in a state-of-the-art tower.
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The new air traffic control tower will replace the existing one, which currently stands at forty-five feet tall. This new tower will be over one hundred feet tall, and the cab will double in size to four hundred square feet. It will be built where the F-4 Phantom display currently resides, and the jet will be moved a short distance away. The current control tower will be decommissioned after the new tower becomes operational, and the FAA will return the ground to the airport. Site surveys have already begun, and The Aero Experience will report on the project as it progresses.
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(2 bottom graphics courtesy of Practice for Architecture and Urbanism)
Airport and community development will be an on-going mission of the St. Louis Regional Airport Authority for many years to come. The airport owns significant tracts, totaling 2,300 acres of land, that may be developed for future aviation and commercial uses. The Airport Authority welcomes proposals for development projects that will benefit the community at large and are compatible with the airport's overall development objectives.
The airport's website provides the current development map with links describing each individual parcel as shown below. The general public may not be aware that there are two business parks that lease to non-aviation businesses providing goods and services to the community while generating revenue for the airport.
Here we show some views of the West Star facility, including the inspection and maintenance hangars and the interior shop where custom seats, cabinetry and trim orders are fulfilled. Special thanks to Brian Bauwens, General Manager of the airport's West Star facility, for providing our tour.
Piston Aviation held their public grand opening at St. Louis Regional Airport last March, bringing flight training back to the airport after a lengthy absence. In less than six weeks, Piston Aviation turned the former 6,000 square foot airport restaurant facility into a luxurious training center and lounge. A site manager and dedicated CFIs serve the growing student population, and visitors are welcome to drop in and explore their flight training options. Three aircraft, including the twin-engine Piper Aztec, are based there with additional aircraft available from their Creve Coeur Airport location as needed for training and special flight events.
"So why is our flight activity and operations count going up?" Adams asked at the Airport Directors Breakfast last October. "The big reason is we added a flight school to the airport, something we have not had on site for about fifteen years. They came over and expanded their operation and moved into what was the former restaurant on the airport...We're happy to have them doing single-engine and multi-engine training from no hours to CFI. A great addition to the airport - they are really bringing in more aeronautical activity."
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Community Outreach
St. Louis Regional Airport hosts numerous events throughout the year. The most visible community outreach event is the annual September Wings-N-Wheels Fly-In and Car Show weekend. On Saturday, large crowds gather to see a wide variety of aircraft on the apron and hundreds of cars on the grounds between the F-4 Phantom jet display and the main road. On Sunday, EAA Chapter 864 provides Young Eagles Flights for youth aged 8-17 in a general aviation aircraft.
Another great event hosted by EAA Chapter 864 and Piston Aviation was held last October. The breakfast fly-in was well attended, as shown below, and all proceeds went to the chapter's aviation scholarship fund. The bat-like Dyke Delta, flown in from Springfield, IL, garnered most of the attention!
Several fire districts were represented at the Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting (ARFF) training held last April at St. Louis Regional Airport. The day-long session was an FAA FAAST Team event providing essential aircraft rescue training for first responders. Mount Vernon Outland Airport Director Chris Collins used his airport's Mobile ARFF Simulator to demonstrate how to access cabin aircraft exits and where to cut into the airframe to extricate survivors. The attendees were also briefed on safely working with ballistic parachutes installed in LSA aircraft using the Tomark Viper provided by Piston Aviation.
General and business aviation traffic remains strong at St. Louis Regional Airport. In addition to the aircraft serviced by West Star and flown for training by Piston Aviation, there is a steady stream of activity from locally based personal aircraft and transient charter operators that have contributed to the increase in aircraft operations last year. Here we include a sample of what we saw during our recent visits.
These are just the highlights of the recent developments at the airport, and much more will be accomplished in the near future. The Aero Experience thanks the St. Louis Regional Airport Authority, West Star Aviation, Piston Aviation and everyone participating in recent airport events for providing the opportunity to showcase this valuable Midwest Aviation asset.
