The Swift Current Airport was recently awarded a sizeable amount of money for repairs and upgrades.
The $35,000 awarded to Swift Current was one of 21 grants to community airports across the province through the Community Airport Partnership (CAP) Program.
The funding will play a vital role in ensuring the airport's infrastructure remains in top condition, further enhancing safety and efficiency for various users, explained Todd Schultz, Airport Superintendent for the City.
“The airport has approximately one million square feet of asphalt surfacing, so a relatively large amount of asphalt for a city facility,” he elaborated. “Each year we do undertake regular preventative maintenance just to extend the lifespan of that structure as long as possible.”
While the city regularly budgets for maintenance and repairs at the airport, he added that every year, the City applies for funding towards their budgeted projects from the Ministry of Highways Community Airport Partnership program.
“It's typically physical infrastructure work that is approved,” he stated. “So, if our application is approved, we can receive up to 50 percent of the value of a project back as a rebate up to an annual limit.”
The airport is set to receive rubberized crack sealing on the main runway, new asphalt on the apron, re-applied painted markings, and upgraded airfield signage to LED backlit fixtures.
“The paint markings on the airport are a federal requirement to maintain to a certain standard, and just due to the weather, snow removal operations, and things, we have to reapply a certain amount of them each year,” he stated. “There's also some electrical work. We are upgrading some of the airfield signage to modern LED units. The old units are several decades old and it's becoming difficult to maintain them and the newer ones being led will also be much more efficient.”
Shultz mentioned that the airport's primary runway underwent resurfacing over the past three years, with the project still awaiting its final phase.
The airport itself is approximately 80 years, making ongoing maintenance and periodic upgrades essential to meeting regulatory standards and supporting aircraft activities.
The town of Maple Creek also received 23,523 dollars from the CAP grant to rehabilitate a small section of the runway.
Grants are cost-shared up to a maximum amount of $275,000. CAP is designed to help offset safety-related improvements such as upgrades to runways and taxiways, lighting, security fencing and navigational systems.