The Tucson Airport Authority (TAA) announced that TAA President/CEO Danette Bewley and the Tucson International Airport (TUS) have been awarded the prestigious Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Safety Award for the Western Pacific Region.
Earlier this month at the FAA Annual Airports Conference in Los Angeles, Bewley was named the winner of this prestigious award that speaks to the progress TUS has made in achieving its highest goal of being an industry leader in airport safety. Bewley says, “The tireless efforts of many talented TAA employees, who continue to shepherd this complex program, has been remarkable as we invest over $400 million dollars in our airport infrastructure to ensure TUS is at the forefront of airfield safety.”
The award recognizes an airport’s contribution to safety, improvements and fosters efficient operations. President/CEO Danette Bewley was honored to receive the FAA’s Annual Safety Award for TUS. During the award recognition, Brian Armstrong, FAA “President/CEO Danette Bewley was chosen because of her leadership and focused approach to safety, project management and grant management, as the TAA executes the complex Airfield Safety Enhancement Program (ASE).”
ASE is a safety and standards project at TUS that improves airfield geometry through relocation and replacement of a parallel runway and a myriad of infrastructure improvements that support commercial, general aviation and military operations. The project has been under construction for over 4 years, with approximately 4 years of work left before the airfield improvements are complete. Recently, the TAA and the Arizona Air National Guard (AANG) recognized the milestone of the completed arm/de-arm pad and end-around taxiway. “On behalf of the TAA Board, we are proud of the FAA recognition, and are pleased with the progress the TAA has made to ensure airfield safety. We look forward to when this complex infrastructure project is complete,” said Keri Silvyn, Chair TAA Board of Directors.
These project elements, considered enabling projects, allow the AANG to continue their important mission and provide the flexibility to realign access/egress for operators while construction on the parallel runway continues.
As operator of TUS, the TAA is committed to providing a sustainable airport system and to constantly pursue initiatives that promote and grow business opportunities, while ensuring safety and security are the utmost top priority.
