Boarding airplanes at Lynchburg Regional Airport will become a bit more convenient next year with the addition of the airport’s first passenger loading bridge.
The bridge and the first round of work on a 17,000-square-yard aviation apron for aircraft parking will be paid for with a $1.8 million grant from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Airport Improvement Program, according to FAA spokesperson Arlene Salac.
The bridge will connect the airport’s main boarding gate with airplanes, shielding passengers from inclement weather and providing easy access to customers with disabilities.“It’s great that passengers won’t need to go out in the rain and snow and what have you to board a plane,” said Deputy Airport Director Marcelo Lima.
Lima said the bridge could be operational by mid-summer 2019. Meanwhile, the airport soon will begin work on Phase 1 of the new aviation apron, which will provide additional space for aircraft parking, boarding, refueling and loading. The construction will include site clearing and work to form a level base.
The airport prioritized work on the aviation apron after state lawmakers approved a tax exemption for airport maintenance last year, Lima said. Airport officials are now working to lure private companies to Lynchburg who may be interested in the new aviation apron, which could provide space for company aircraft.
“We feel this is a good time to take advantage of that tax break and allow for companies that want to relocate to Virginia to have a site semi-developed and ready to go to build an operating facility and do business in Lynchburg,” Lima said. “We’re hoping to make the area marketable now to get interest and then develop the apron to meet their needs.”
The federal funding, announced Tuesday, comes a little more than a month after the airport transitioned to full jet service on July 2. Lima said the federal funding will help the airport as it continues to grow.
“Now that we’re an all-jet air carrier airport, it just makes sense to add that next level of service,” Lima said.
