Friedman Memorial Airport's runway operation had no criticisms during an hour-and-a-half meeting Wednesday, Nov. 18, among pilots, the airport's manager, the control tower chief and a Federal Aviation Administration runway safety expert.
However, several of the nearly two dozen pilots attending the session suggested improvements that Manager Rick Baird said would be discussed for implementation.
He said he would discuss with the airport authority reopening a portion of a taxiway that had been closed to allow installation of the transponder landing system. The FAA removed the TLS structure last month.
Baird also favored some system by which pilots can be updated and briefed on purely local conditions that would affect their flying—such as information on Friedman's demanding crosswinds that can make takeoffs and landings for small aircraft difficult during certain times of the year and day.
Another suggestion was that terminal radar would help control tower operators pinpoint aircraft precisely when pilots report their inbound or outbound positions. But Baird said local radar probably would be deferred until a replacement airport is built.
As for incursions on the Friedman runway, Baird said he recalls only a few incidents—one involving a transient aircraft that landed and took off from the closed runway when it was undergoing repair, and another involving an aircraft owner's dog that ran onto the runway.
Baird also said safety is probably better at an airport such as Friedman because pilots who fly in mountain conditions are better attuned to risks than flatlander pilots.
