June 14--Tulsa International Airport officials are in talks to take over management of Claremore Regional Airport in hopes of relieving demand for hangar space at Tulsa's two public air fields.
TIA deputy director Jeff Hough said they could take over management of the Claremore property as soon as Sept. 1, an alternative to building an entirely new air field somewhere in Tulsa.
"Riverside is basically completely full and the same goes for Tulsa International," Hough said.
Both Tulsa International and Jones Riverside airports have no room left for private or corporate hangars, even as more pilots request places to park their planes.
The only space left at Jones Riverside Airport is set aside for a future Federal Aviation Administration flight control tower.
But the Claremore Regional Airport is located on 520 acres, most of it undeveloped.
Today, Claremore has 60 airplane tenants in hangars and has about 12,000 combined landings and takeoffs a year. It is located about 8 miles from downtown Claremore and about a 40-minute drive from downtown Tulsa. The runway is just under one mile long with a long taxiway beside it.
Tulsa Airport officials have been looking for a new site for Tulsa's growing airport appetite for more than five years.
Hough said studies have indicated that much of the demand comes from the eastern half of the Tulsa metropolitan area, such as midtown Tulsa, Broken Arrow and Owasso.
"They have a lot of potential for expansion and it is a really nice airport," Hough said. "They have quite a few hangars, but they do have more space."
A new airport would cost the Tulsa Airport Authority millions of dollars, and the group is restricted by FAA rules to keep costs to fliers as low as possible.
The proposed plan calls for the Tulsa Airport Authority to officially take over management services from the Claremore Industrial & Economic Development Authority, the group that now runs the airport.
The property itself is owned by the city of Claremore.
Hough said they are trying to make sure the deal doesn't drain money from current Tulsa airport operations.
"The airlines (at Tulsa International Airport) have indicated that they do not want to carry the costs for another airport," he said.
The Claremore Regional Airport has one full-time employee, airport director Eric Winn, and a part-time staff that cuts grass and does some airport work during the weekend.
"There would definitely be more resources for the (Claremore) airport, plus just having an authority that has already ran and developed airports would help," Winn said. "We've done a great job up to this point, but they are thinking that they can really grow the airport."
The Claremore Regional Airport is self-sustaining, but the deal would mean bringing the one employee, Winn, under the Tulsa Airport Authority.
Hough said they looked at other airports in the area, such as the William R. Pogue Municipal Airport in Sand Springs. The Claremore Regional Airport, however, appealed to Tulsa Airport leaders because of the huge amount of undeveloped land and the potential for expansion.
Any deal would have to be approved by both the Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust and the Claremore Industrial & Economic Development Authority.
Tulsa-area airports
Claremore Regional Airport (GCM)
19502 E. Rogers Post Road, Claremore
Runway: 5,200 feet
Size: 520 acres
Tenants: 60 aircraft
Activity: 33 take-offs and landings per day
Tulsa International Airport (TUL)
7777 E. Apache Road, Tulsa
Runways: 9,999 feet, 6,101 feet and 7,376 feet
Size: 4,360 acres
Tenants: 64 commercial leases
Activity: 292 take-offs and landings per day
Richard Lloyd Jones Jr. "Riverside" Airport (RVS)
8605 S. Elwood Ave., Tulsa
Runways: 5,102 feet, 4,208 feet, 2,641 feet
Size: 752 acres
Tenants: 170 private hangars, 41 commercial leases
Activity: 554 take-offs and landings per day
Kyle Arnold 918-581-8380
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