Jan. 10 — A growing wingspan

Thun Field aims to become self-sustaining to help fund improvement projects and future growth

Roxanne Cooke / of the Herald

The undeveloped 40 acres east of Pierce County Airport are a gold mine, according to Thun Field Airport Administrator Michael Esher. How that land is used could be the source of revenue the 240-acre airport is looking for to become self-sufficient, Esher said. Currently, the airport breaks even through daily operations but needs to generate more revenue for capital improvement projects.

To solve this quandary, Pierce County is in the midst of conducting a landside planning study of the entire airport to determine the best use of the 40 acres, he said. The aim is to attract an aviation-related business similar to existing businesses at the airport, such as flight school SpanaFlight or Spencer Aviation, an aircraft repair company.

The study will also assess the worth of existing buildings and ascertain the cost to repair or replace them. As development occurs around the airport, aging structures, including hangars, start to stand out, Esher said.

“It leaves you vulnerable to community criticism,” he said.

The airport must find its own ways to fund landside expenses like repairing or replacing old hangars and buildings.

The Federal Aviation Administration will fund 95 percent of airside costs, such as the future taxiway realignment, but the landside operations are typically the responsibility of the airport.

The FAA did fund the $1.4 million acquisition of the 40 acres, Esher said. That’s because Thun Field’s 20-year master plan — also funded by the FAA — includes a second taxiway and additional hangars.

Plus, the FAA will often purchase land in congested areas near airports to prevent nearby development from occurring, he added. Preventing homes or businesses from building there is a form of noise abatement.

“Noise is always an issue for every airport,” Esher said.

Thun Field provides pilots with a handbook with recommended steps for noise reduction — it’s a good neighbor policy, he said.

For the landside planning study, the county will form a planning committee of airport and land development experts that will meet four times during the course of the county’s study with the goal of developing a recommended plan of action for the airport.

In addition to the landside analysis, the airport plans to realign the taxiway.

Thun Field recently acquired five acres from neighboring Northwest Cascade to begin this project, which is funded with $1 million from the FAA.

Pierce County Airport officials also want the airport to start providing Jet-A fuel, which is used to fuel helicopters, search and rescue operations and in general, more modern and quieter aircraft.

It would be an asset to the airport and community, Esher said.

“It’s something that is lacking here,” he said.

It’s a misnomer that Jet-A fuel will bring in big noisy jets, Esher said. Thun Field isn’t even big enough to land those kinds of aircraft.

Also in the works for 2008 are more renovations to the airport entrance on Meridian, he said.

The airport remodeled its signage, which faces Meridian, last August.

Thun Field is still receiving feedback on the new sign, said Bruce Thun, airport operations manager and son of John Thun, who constructed the airport in the 1940s.

“We wanted to clean that up and simplify it,” Thun said.

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> Pierce County Airport, also known as Thun Field, was built in 1944 and purchased by Pierce County in 1979.

> Location: 16715 Meridian, Puyallup

> Size: Runway is 3,650 feet long by 60 feet wide. Airport is 240 acres.

> Activity: There are approximately 90,000 takeoffs and landings per year.

> Operation cost per year: $605,000

> Capital cost per year: $3,150,000

> Operational revenue per year: $458,480

> Capital revenue per year: $210,000

Reach Reporter Roxanne Cooke at 253-841-2481 ext. 314 or by e-mail at roxanne.cooke@puyallupherald.com.