A new safety

regulation from the Federal Aviation Administration will eventually require

a 1,000-foot "safety overrun" area to be added to Falcon Field's

runway.

The extra room

would allow departing planes to safely abort takeoff if necessary, but

it will not allow larger aircraft to land at Falcon Field, said Airport

Manager Jim Savage.

"This

is not about getting bigger airplanes to land here," Savage said.

"... It's so pilots can abort takeoff and not do significant damage

to the aircraft."

The safety

overrun area project won't happen for "at least five years"

and no official cost estimates have been compiled, Savage said. He guessed

the project will cost over $3 million, perhaps running as high as $4.5

million.

Although the

project is low on the Airport Authority's priority list, authority members

have begun talking about it because of the unique challenges it brings.

The matter will be discussed at a special authority retreat that is planned

for April.

There isn't

enough room on the airport's property to add the extra 1,000 feet necessary

for the project. And since the runway is blocked off to the south by the

CSX railroad track, the only way to expand would be north towards the

Planterra Ridge Golf Course.

the project is ready to go, another obstacle will have been built between

the airport and the golf course: TDK Boulevard, which will extend into

Coweta County to provide another route from Coweta to Peachtree City's

industrial park.

"This

will not impede TDK as it is currently planned," Savage said.

To make room

for the new safety overrun area, the city will need to purchase two holes

of the golf course so a new path for a portion of the TDK extension could

"snake" around the extra area needed for the runway safety overrun,

Savage said.

The new route

would be built first so it wouldn't be necessary for TDK Blvd. to be shut

down, he said.

Savage also

wants the authority to consider paving the safety overrun area, which

would give corporate jets more "breathing room" on takeoff but

still wouldn't allow larger aircraft to land here, Savage said.

"In the

warmer air, it takes longer to get airborne during takeoff," Savage

said. "It's more of a factor for jets because they're heavier than

other aircraft."

The FAA doesn't

require the runway safety overrun to be paved, but it wants the land to

meet certain specifications which will require a certain amount of grading

activity, Savage noted.

Currently Falcon

Field's runway is 5,200 feet long. The safety overrun would extend the

runway to 6,200 feet for departures only, with the length remaining 5,200

feet for incoming aircraft, Savage said.

It's likely

that most of the project including the rerouting of the TDK Boulevard

extension would be paid for by the FAA, Savage said.

"We have

no clue when that money is coming," Savage noted.

The project

is listed on the airport's master plan, but it is not one its list of

high-priority projects.

The authority

is expected to talk about this project and many others at a special retreat

in April. But authority chairwoman Cathy Nelmes said she wanted to briefly

address the City Council on the matter at its retreat which is scheduled

to begin Friday, March 7.

While Nelmes

said she wished the authority could make a decision on the matter Wednesday

night at its regular meeting, she added, "I just don't think we have

enough information to do it."

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