What is the Airport Management Plan? The FAA requires Airport Commissions to write a Management Plan every 20 years specifying expected capital needs in the next 20 years. The present plan expires in 2023, but the new one was started in 2018.
What does the AMPU want? Chatham Airport is designated for visual approaches with 1 mile visibility. The stated goal behind the new Chatham Airport Management Plan Update (AMPU) was to establish on-board horizontal and vertical guidance instrument approaches at the Airport to allow planes to land in poor visibility. It was surmised that this would be for benefit of the 9-passenger turboprop charters and presumably a small number of local pilots, to avoid having occasionally to reroute to Cape Cod Gateway Airport in Hyannis, a short 15 miles away. Another goal also for the convenience of the charters was to allow them to fly ‘straight-in’, without circling. The AMPU proposal also lists a 10,000 gallon jet-fuel tank, to support more charters.
Why is the FAA Involved? In order to implement those instrument approaches, the FAA applies much more stringent Airport Design Standards than those for the existing visual approaches. For example the requirements are for a 3200ft runway instead of the 3000 ft one, a 30:1 approach surface, and much greater cleared areas around the runway and the ends of the runway.
What are Avigation Easements and Why are they needed? The consequence of a 30:1 glide-path surface would have been 46 so-called avigation easements, which would require that the FAA takes over rights to the 46 properties, and can remove any trees it objects to in perpetuity. These easements have been described as the “kiss of death” to property values, and would likely cost the Town millions in legal costs to implement.
Is there a Present Problem? Despite the AMPU, an Airport Layout Plan also required for capital funding, was submitted last year, showing that there is currently a need for 22 avigation easements just to maintain the present 20:1 glide-path surfaces because vegetation is protruding through these surfaces.
Does Chatham Airport have adequate safety zones? No. A major safety issue at Chatham Airport is that designated safety zones (RPZs) are already populated with homes, stores, offices and highways, to which the FAA takes strong exception. In addition implementing instrument approaches would require much larger safety zones covering many more homes, which the FAA state explicitly that they would never approve.
Can the FAA change the Design Rules? Yes, but for the FAA to allow a Modification of Standards for a 3000ft runway, and an inadequate glide-slope putting more people at risk in populated safety zones, seems very unlikely. The extraordinary costs of ~$10M and unrealistic avigation easements and environmental damage for the benefit of a tiny few are outrageous. Straight-in is also very controversial and potentially dangerous without a control tower. Chatham Airport is geographically constrained with wetlands and a village center at one end of the runway and a hill at the other end, and homes all around it even in the safety zones. Added to the fact that the Community does not want noisy turboprop charters.
What was the Airport Commission’s Expectation? The expectation by the Airport Commission that the Community would accept and pay for 46 avigation easements, and the multiple environmental impacts is astounding. The runway was jammed up against trees the wetlands and a vernal pool, so it is not surprising that those trees are now obstructing the 20:1 glide-path surface.
What is the Solution? The runway needs to be effectively shortened with a Threshold Displacement.
How can I find out more? All the areas mentioned here and many more are elaborated on this website on different pages and in different sections listed in the Index.