The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced $1.9 billion in grants as part of its ongoing Airport Improvement Program (AIP) as well as an additional $269 million in FY 2023 Supplemental Discretionary Grants to fund a total of 581 projects. The FAA also announced a $2.9 million grant awarded to Maryland’s Tipton Airport as part of its Military Airport Program (MAP) designed to fund the construction of a new terminal.
The FAA’s fifth round of AIP grants includes airport structure, safety and sustainability projects including, for the first time, funding earmarked for the testing of technologies designed to reduce, mitigate and remove contaminants caused by Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF) and other per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
Airports receiving AIP grants for the testing of PFAS remediation include San Luis Obispo County Airport (SBP), which received $3.5 million toward the testing of three different PFAS remediation technologies for both soil and water; Nantucket Memorial Airport (ACK), which received $1.2 million for the testing of hydrothermal alkaline treatment (HALT) technologies; and Pellston Regional Airport (PLN), which received $700,000 for the testing of soil stabilization additives designed to prevent PFAS leaching into groundwater.
Other airports awarded sustainability-related AIP grants include St. Louis Lambert International Airport (STL), which received $29.1 million to fund both taxiway pavement reconstruction as well as the purchase and installation of zero-emission equipment; Muskegon County Airport (MKG), which received $20.4 million for the purchase and installation of zero-emissions vehicles and chargers plus new lighting and to go toward shifting the airport’s Taxiway A pavement; Salt Lake City International (SLC), which received $15.1 million for the purchase and installation of 11 zero-emissions vehicles and four chargers as well as the construction of a new terminal tarmac; Fort Wayne International Airport (FWA), which received $10.1 million for the purchase of low-emission equipment and to expand its East terminal and the shifting of Taxiway C2; Detroit Metro Wayne County Airport (DTW), which received $6.2 million for the purchase and installation of low-emission equipment; and Norman Y. Mineta San José International Airport(SJC), which received $3.5 million for the purchase and installation of 12 electric pre-conditioned air power units.
Airports receiving AIP grants for taxiway and runway pavement projects include Tucson International Airport (TUS), which received $55 million to shift Runway 11/29; Grand Junction Regional Airport (GJT), which received $34.7 million for grading and drainage required to shift Runway 11/29; Columbus Airport (CSG), which received $24.4 million to fund the reconstruction of Runway 6/24; and South Bend International Airport (SBN), which received $18.7 million to fund the reconstruction of Taxiway B.
Airports that received AIP grants for noise mitigation initiatives and studies include Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), which received $15.8 million for the purchase and installation of sound insulation treatments for 400 adjacent residences affected by airport noise exposure; Key West International Airport (EYW), which received $2.2 million for the design and installation of sound insulation treatments for 62 adjacent homes; Tweed New Haven Airport (HVN), which received $539,910 for the installation of sound insulation treatments in 12 nearby residences; and Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), which received $555,019 for the purchase and installation of sound insulation treatments for 12 homes affected by airport noise exposure.
Airports receiving the AIP’s 2023 Supplemental Discretionary Grant Program funding include STL, which received $20 million towards airfield drainage improvements and new storage buildings; San Francisco Bay Oakland International (OAK), which received $18 million to improve the airport’s perimeter dike; Salt Lake City International (SLC), which received $14.5 million toward the construction of new service roads; Kahului Airport (OGG), which received $14.3 million to replace its apron lights; Dallas Love Field Airport (DAL), which received $10 million toward sustainability, utility and erosion mitigation projects; Houma-Terrebonne Airport Commission, which received $1.3 million for the construction of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) facilities; Andrew Othole Memorial Airport (KXNI), which received $1 million toward removing an obstructive hill adjacent to Runway 6/24; the City of Naples Airport Authority, which received $630,000 for the construction of an SAF tank; and Cheyenne Eagle Butte Airport (84D), which received $545,400 toward a new automated weather observing system.
“Today, we invest in our future – enhancing safety, improving sustainability and ensuring our infrastructure meets the needs of the traveling public,” said FAA associate administrator for airports Shannetta R. Griffin. “This funding helps ensure traveler safety, reduces the environmental impacts on communities, and builds more resilient airports nationally.”
“The Biden-Harris Administration is funding projects across the country that are making airports safer and more efficient for the passengers who travel through them and for the airport and airline employees who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make these complex systems run as smoothly as possible,” added U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. “The grants we’re announcing today will improve airfield operations for dozens of airports and help ensure the U.S. retains its global leadership in aviation.”
