Story ID: 
Massachusetts Airport Starts Runway Rehab Project
By: Curt Epstein
Caption: Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport has kicked off a $7.6 million reconstruction project on its secondary runway 15/33.
Word Count: 174
Massachusetts’s Westfield-Barnes Regional Airport has begun a project to rebuild its 5,000-foot secondary Runway 15/33. Nearly $7 million of the $7.6 million construction cost will be covered by federal AIP grants, while the state department of transportation and the city of Westfield will pay the remaining 10 percent.

The project, which has been planned for several years, is seen to be crucial to maintaining the airport’s competitive status with nearby facilities such as Westover Metropolitan Airport and Bradley International in Connecticut.

"We're fortunate that this project has been able to move forward during the Covid pandemic and we're looking forward to the runway being open at the end of September," airport director Chris Willenborg told AIN.

That work period will include a one-month curing period for the pavement before the grooving of water channels to increase braking action in wet or snowy conditions. While such an upgrade is expected to last for 20 years, 15/33 was last reconstructed sometime in the 1970s.