State Aviation Journal Skybrief 12/30/2013
SAJ Celebrates 5 Years – To Refocus Magazine The State Aviation Journal celebrated its 5th year anniversary  in November and will take this occasion to refocus the direction of the online magazine in the coming year. “When we first started publishing the magazine, we tried to focus on a different state aviation program in each issue,” said Kim Stevens, founder and publisher. “The last couple of years we drifted off the beam a bit and found ourselves dancing all over the industry with our coverage.” The plan going forward is to dedicate a major portion of each issue to a different state aviation office – highlighting the people and programs. “There’s plenty of great news there,” said Stevens. “That’s been our niche and no one else is doing it.” The magazine will continue to be published quarterly and will continue to include the popular edition that focuses entirely on the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) Annual Meeting and Trade Show each Fall. The weekly Skybrief will continue to cover a broader spectrum of the aviation industry, but Stevens hinted that there may be some redesign in the works there as well.
NORTH DAKOTA AIRPORTS REACH 1 MILLION PASSENGER MARK North Dakota has seen more than 1 Million passengers pass through the state’s airports for the second year in a row. This year the mark was set in November, one month earlier as Fargo, Grand Forks and Dickinson set passenger enplanement records and Williston had its best month ever. Larry Taborsky, shown at right, Director of the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission said he is proud of what the airports in North Dakota have accomplished. “North Dakota has more flights to more destinations that ever before.”
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Maine Aviation startup markets recording device for small airports – gets state buy-in It’s their combined aviation knowledge, buy-in from Maine’s DOT and the quick delivery to market of a product that was just a notion a year ago that gives them confidence they’ll find ready customers among airport managers. After launching the recorder system earlier this year, Maine’s DOT announced it is developing a program to cover up to half the cost of the system for any of the 42 public airports in the state. Read more: Bangor Daily News

Pennsylvania Regional Airports Share in $10 Million Three regional airports are among 10 recipients of $10 million in state aviation grants for improvement projects. Governor Tom Corbett announced that Washington County Airport in South Franklin will get $2.6 million to build a taxiway and apron and to prepare and build out a hangar site. Arnold Palmer Airport in Unity will get $2 million for the first phase of a terminal expansion and Allegheny County Airport in West Mifflin will get $900,000 to rehabilitate and restore the historic main terminal. The grants were approved by the State Transportation Commission, a panel made up of the transportation secretary, four legislators and 10 citizens appointed by the governor.
Georgia FAA to Subject Paulding Airport to Rigorous Environmental Review Landowners agree to drop their D.C. Circuit court challenge in return for FAA commitment to conduct comprehensive environmental assessment, newly transparent public process, and public meeting in Paulding County. Read more: Dallas-Hiram Patch

Indiana Aviation Board Swears in Whipple At its regular monthly meeting , the Greensburg Board of Aviation Commissioners welcomed Commissioner Don Whipple to another term with a formal swearing-in ceremony. Read more: Greensburg Daily News
BELL HELICOPTER ANNOUNCES NEW FACILITY IN LOUISIANA Earlier this month, Governor Bobby Jindal and Bell Helicopter  CEO John Garrison announced the company will build its new SLS helicopter line at Lafayette Regional Airport, leading to the first modern-era aircraft assembly facility in Louisiana history. Brad Brandt, (shown at right), Aviation Director for the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development, credits this achievement to the leadership and vision of the Lafayette Airport Commission, along with the leadership shown through the support of the local community. Read more: State Aviation Journal
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