NLV airport to take off with expansion

Diana Sahagun

Friday, April 7, 2000 | 10:45 a.m.

A $12 million expansion of the North Las Vegas Airport will feature "more bells and whistles," and will attract hundreds more aircraft to the facility already dubbed as the state's second busiest airport in terms of take-offs and landings.

Tom Petrakis, Federal Aviation Administration air traffic manager for the North Las Vegas Airport, spoke of the project just days after the groundbreaking ceremony for the new air traffic control tower, runway and taxiway extensions planned to be up and running by 2001.

Last year's volume for the North Las Vegas Airport was 237,000 take-offs and landings and is projected to reach 258,000 for this year, Petrakis said. With the new runway, the total could soar to more than 300,000.

The project is a combined effort with the Clark County Department of Aviation.

The new $6.4 million control tower will incorporate the latest in electronic technology and advanced radio and land-line communications, while providing controllers the ability to monitor aircraft movements on all designated airport "movement areas."

"The biggest problem that we face daily in the existing tower is the lack of space," Petrakis said.

The existing tower, built in 1977, has a 225-square-foot cab and no associated base building. The new tower will have a 525-square-foot cab and will provide controllers better visibility of all operational areas.

There are currently 15 air traffic controllers and an operational supervisor who work rotating shifts from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. There may be a few staff members added when the new tower is complete, he said.

The facility will also include a 4,600-square-foot administrative building, which will house electronic equipment and administrative office space, currently not available in the existing structure.

One of the unique aspects of the tower is how the equipment can be serviced, Petrakis said. Currently, repair technicians are forced to use a crawl space under the console, and are sometimes in the way of the controller. The new tower has a horseshoe stairway behind the consoles, so the technicians can be completely behind the console, not visible to the controllers.

"There's a lot of 'gee whiz' that has gone into it," Petrakis said.

In addition to the tower, there will be a $5 million to $6 million parallel runway project that will also be completed in 2001.

There are currently only two runways, which leads to a constant mixing of aircraft, he said. The way the runways are configured, the north and south runway intersects with the east to west runway. The third and new parallel runway will be shorter, 4,000 feet.

Additionally, more hangar space will be constructed.

"One of the biggest problems is places for aircraft to physically park," Petrakis said, adding that construction will add approximately 200 places.

Because the new runway and adjoining taxiways will have to be constructed during everyday traffic, there is a five-phase plan for how to redirect aircraft.

Although the increase in aircraft and noise could mean a headache for nearby residents, Hilarie Grey, spokeswoman for the Clark County Department of Aviation, said the expansion is a necessary part of growth.

"We have been working closely with the neighbors to make sure they are informed every step of the way," she said. "We see that the need is so strong for more aircraft operations ... which will help us keep the airport safe and operations efficient to minimize the effects to the neighborhood.

"We see the North Las Vegas Airport as a key part of our aviation system in Southern Nevada, a great center for community education and for general aviation enthusiasts and commercial/tourism aspects that drive our economy."

Diana Sahagun covers North Las Vegas for the Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-2320 or by e-mail at diana@lasvegassun.com