Public airport officials from North Carolina gathered in Raleigh on Tuesday to attended Airport Planning and Environmental, number 6 in a series of 12 training courses in the North Carolina Airport Leadership and Management Program (ALMP), the signature program of the North Carolina Airport Technical Assistance Program (NC AirTAP).
NC AirTAP is a program of the N.C. Department of Transportation’s Division of Aviation, managed by the Institute for Transportation Research and Education at North Carolina State University and offered in collaboration with the North Carolina Airports Association (NCAA).
NC AirTAP supports airport professionals through professional development programs, safety and operational training workshops, and connections to resources, technical assistance and networks.
ALMP was launced by NC AirTAP in the summer of 2018. Designed for both new and current North Carolina airport officials, managers and operations staff, this training is particularly beneficial to those managing and operating General Aviation facilities.
The ALMP curriculum includes 12 training and continuing education courses addressing various airport management and operational topics to enhance the career development of N.C. airport administrators and staff. “Once you complete 9 of the 12 courses offered, you earn the designation as an NC Airport Professional,” noted Stephanie L. Sudano, P.E., the Special Projects Engineer for the Division.
Topics covered within the Airport Planning and Environmental course included Airport Planning and Land Use, Airport Layout Plans and Master Plans, Airport Zoning Ordinances, Environmental Considerations and Airspace Considerations. Instructors included Pam Keidel-Adams, Regional Vice President, Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc., Robert Jackson, Planning and Environmental Engineer, NCDOT Division of Aviation, and Jon Walker, Airspace Evaluation Specialist, Flight Procedures Team AJV-E24, FAA.
“I was happy to be asked to teach master planning and ALP development for NCDOTs AirTAP program,” said Keidel-Adams. “The attendees were engaging and truly interested in learning.” Several attendees told Keidel-Adams afterwards that they had learned something and were going to use information presented during her three presentations at their airports.
The goals of the Airport Planning and Environmental course are to help participants understand:
- Their role in the North Carolina and federal airport systems.
- Airport planning elements and tools.
- How to include interested parties in the planning process.
- How to keep an airport’s growth sustainable and environmentally sound.
Upon completion of this particular course, participants should be able to:
- Explain how their airport is supporting the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems.
- Explain the importance of the North Carolina Airport System Plan.
- Describe their Critical Aircraft and the airport’s Airport Reference Code (ARC).
- Identify sources of economic and aviation data and who to include when updating the Airport Master Plan.
- Describe an airport GIS Program (FAA’s Airport Data and Information Portal ADIP).
- Identify how the Airport Master Plan and Airport Layout Plan (ALP) can aid in success of your airport as well as day-to-day operations.
- Identify how local zoning ordinances affect airport operations.
- Describe land use planning needs and how it relates to airport planning.
- Identify how NEPA affects airport projects.
- Understand environmental considerations.
- Explain how to conduct Obstruction Evaluation/Airport Airspace Analysis.
In addition to the ALMP series, other development and training opportunities offered by NC AirTAP for public airport officials include one day Airport Safety & Maintenance Workshops, mini sessions Presentations offered in collaboration with the North Carolina Airports Association at quarterly NCAA region meetings, and an ongoing Listserve and email distribution list. For more information on NC AirTAP visit: https://itre.ncsu.edu/focus/aviation/nc-airtap/
