Feb. 26--Northwest Arkansas Avionics, an aircraft electronics specialist in the Federal Aviation Administration's "NextGen" Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast technology, is moving into a larger space at the Fort Smith Airport.
The Fort Smith Airport Commission approved the lease of Hangar 22 at the Fort Smith Airport to begin March 1 with a month grace period on rent to account for moving from Hangar 2 at TAC Air and the Federal Aviation Administration inspection period.
"We have limited space and have been extremely busy," Northwest Arkansas Avionics General Manager Al Hosier said. "Yesterday we had planes in from four different states. TAC Air has been generous with letting us use up most of the parking space."
Hangar 22 is also known as "the old Baldor hangar," Airport Director John Parker said. The move comes along with the company's increase in activity in ADS-B, a long-term FAA project that began in 2005 and is a "crucial component of the nation's Next-Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen)," the FAA states.
The program will change the nation's air traffic control system from one that relies on radar technology to a system that uses precise location data from the global satellite network. Hosier said the system will allow for safer flights.
Northwest Arkansas Avionics started operation at the Fort Smith Airport 26 years ago in July.
Copyright 2014 - Times Record, Fort Smith, Ark.
