Photo – Grayson Ardies, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics, led the groundbreaking ceremony for upgrades at the South Grand Lake Regional Airport in northeastern Oklahoma. The improvements include a new terminal, a hangar, and a parallel taxiway.
The Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics (ODAA) and South Grand Lake Regional Airport (SGLRA) celebrated the next steps for several much-anticipated improvement projects with a recent groundbreaking ceremony. On the slate for upgrades at the northeastern Oklahoma airport are a new terminal, a hangar, and a parallel taxiway.
SGLRA’s improvements are part of a multi-phase effort over the next five years to upgrade the Craig County-based airport. The projects are programmed and funded by the ODAA Airport Construction Program (ACP), a five-year revolving program plan that has been a long-standing practice of the agency, but was codified in state law during the 2025 legislative session. The purpose of the evolving ACP is to enhance air transportation project planning for the state, the FAA, and airport sponsors. This programming process aims to anticipate airport funding needs and schedules through multi-year planning. This is the process by which the department fulfills its mandate to create a system of airports that meets the business, transportation, and commercial needs of communities across the state.
The cost for all three projects totals about $12.3 million. The construction of the terminal and hangar will cost just over $6 million and will be primarily funded by legislatively directed funds through ODAA. The taxiway project is planned to cost about $6.3 million, with the majority being funded with $6 million from the FAA, and about $314,000 in matching funds being split between ODAA and the local airport sponsor.
