Airport Advisory Board

AGENDA Airport Advisory Board Tuesday, August 25, 2020 7:00 p.m. Location 3232 Pleasant Street West Community Hangar DeKalb, Illinois 60115 A. Roll Call B. Approval of Agenda – Additions / Deletions C. Public Participation D. Approval of Minutes – July 28, 2020 E. Reports a. Airport Manager’s Report Our NIU Summer Intern, Dylan Moffitt, completed his internship on August 6. He made valuable contributions during his tenure and will be missed. We have been working with a couple of aviation-specific applications that provide pilots with information on FBO services and fuel prices, Nozl and FlightBridge. Having a presence on their sites has potential to reach fuel customers we might not have been able to reach. Michelle Brening and I interviewed five line service applicants for the open part time position and the best candidate has been cleared through the pre-employment background checks, references and physical exam. We anticipate on-boarding the individual in September. I met with our WorldFuel/Ascent Aviation regional representative to review our fueling operations, fuel trucks, fuel farm, and POS. As a follow-up, he provided information on fuel truck leases, personnel training options, and reduced-cost POS for our FY 2021 budget process. Derecho winds on Monday, Aug. 10, had no ill effects, except for one tie-down aircraft’s canopy that came loose and blew onto the tie down rope of the adjacent aircraft! On Tuesday, Aug. 11, I received a notice of no impact from the FAA regarding a Proposed Antenna Tower - NW of DKB Rwy 9 End located a business on the east side of Peace Road, north of Pleasant Street. I forwarded to the appropriate departments at City Hall for follow up. Sycamore Kiwanis Club requested social-distancing meeting space in our Community hangar, met on Tue., Aug. 18, 6-7:30pm, and provided their own chairs. We charged them $30 for afterhours staffing. Airport Advisory Board Agenda August 25, 2020 They anticipate continuing to using the hangar as a back-up location for inclement weather for their other scheduled gatherings at a local park. Our replacement PTZ Camera for the south ramp has been installed. I began discussions with Jon Orman, Public Works Fleet Superintendent, regarding the burn pile on the airfield and coordinating with Jeff McMasters for fire department management of the burn. On Saturday, Aug. 15, I flew from DuPage Airport (DPA) with a friend in his Diamond DA-20 and we flew to DKB and we did three touch-and-goes on Runway 20 using a standard left traffic pattern. That day Cortland resident Nick Frerichs sent me and Bill Nicklas 12 emails with videos attached, and one was of our flight. Alan Waloszyk, FAA lighting repair tech, stopped into my office on Monday, Aug. 17, and we discussed airfield lighting, Pilot Reports for initiating repairs, and our future airfield projects, PAPI installations and 2021 R2/20 overlay. We reviewed the PAPI engineering diagrams and I emailed them to him for further review. We will stay in contact for the Pre-Construction meeting scheduling, as he or another technician will need to participate once the project has movement. I had requested proof of insurance for the Civil Air Patrol and received a hard copy in the mail on Tuesday, Aug. 18. Also on Tuesday, Aug. 18, I began discussing with Bill Nicklas and Matt Rose the necessity of DeKalb Flight Center submitting a City of DeKalb Motor Fuel Sales Tax Form, which is not required, as we do not sell Motor Fuel. On Friday, Aug. 21, two technicians arrived from Applied Pavement Technologies who is contracted by IDOT to perform airfield pavement inspections which is accomplished every three years. The DKB airfield pavement inspections take between 13 and 15 hours total and were completed on Saturday, Aug. 22. They used their own appropriately marked, lighted vehicles with air band transceivers to communicate with air traffic and gave way as required. The data collected is provided directly to the FAA for determining urgency of pavement rehabilitation at all public use airports in the U.S. In the past couple of weeks, I have worked with Doug Eaton, from the City IT department, to design a new airport layout plan using the most recent Hanson engineering documents overlaying a Google Earth satellite map of the airport. b. Flight and Ground Operations Airport Manager’s Summary: June fuel sales as recorded: Month 100LL gal Sales JetA gal Sales July, 2020 8,133 $28,953.75 10,356 $28,018.25 vs. June, 2019 13,347 $58,582.10 8,592 $27,175.85 NOTE: 2019 100LL fuel sales was due to the increased transient piston aircraft operations surrounding the Experimental Aircraft Association’s yearly Fly-in/Airshow, AirVenture, which was cancelled for 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions. Page 2 Airport Advisory Board Agenda August 25, 2020 The 100LL fuel farm pump issues continued plaguing our self-serve reliability from the end of July through Monday, Aug. 17, when Kevin Howard and a Filtration Corp technician were able to accomplish what is proving to be final repairs to the system. No leaks have been noted, and the pump seems to be holding its prime! The end of July brought two crop dusting operations to our field: Nutrien Ag Solutions staged two of their Air Tractors and support vehicles on our Jet Ramp and purchased 102 gallons of JetA fuel; AgriFlite West also staged their crop spraying operations on the Jet Ramp and purchased 130 gallons of JetA. I received two phone call complaints related to crop dusting operations in general, outside of these two operators. We serviced several corporate operators in the past month: o On Wednesday, July 29, Enbridge Energy’s brand-new pipeline inspection Airbus A350 helicopter arrived, took 98 gallons of JetA fuel and the pilot said he would be back when he’s in the area again. o On Monday, Aug. 3, Jimmy John’s Lear 45 corporate jet arrived about 9am with passengers who were picked up for meetings. The captain is from DeKalb and his parents came to see him fly in. They departed just before 1pm. o On Thursday, Aug. 6: ▪ Bell Bank’s corporate jet arrived and purchased 160 gallons of JetA fuel. ▪ Just after noon, three corporate jets owned by Scotts Miracle Gro arrived with 12 passengers, utilized five Enterprise Rental Cars for the day, and purchased catering from Lincoln Inn. The three aircraft purchased in total 2,548 gallons of JetA fuel. We had a run of overnight freight flight operations for Adient in Sycamore, and our Line Service crew stepped up to the challenges of delayed arrivals and many long, late night hours at DKB! o Thursday, Aug. 6 - a twin-turboprop Metroliner aircraft arrived at 9pm and off loaded 6 pallets. o Friday, Aug. 7 - 3:05am and 3:55am, a twin-turboprop Metroliner and 1 Falcon 20 arrived and off loaded 6 pallets each. Mario and Rich were the overnight call-out staff to run the forklift and spot and refuel with JetA. The 4am cargo Metroliner twin turboprop had a hydraulic failure upon arrival. Win Aviation effected repairs after they opened, the pilot purchased fuel and departed about 9am. o Saturday, Aug. 8 – a Falcon 20 jet arrived around 6pm and our line service off-loaded 4 pallets of car seat frames, followed at 10pm by a Metroliner who also off-loaded 4 pallets. Both aircraft overnighted on our ramp. o Sunday, Aug. 9 - the Metroliner departed in the afternoon after purchasing 431 gallons of JetA fuel. o Monday, Aug. 10 – two freight aircraft arrived and purchased 1,184 gallons of JetA fuel. o Wednesday, Aug 12 - Two Falcon 20 freight operators arrived around 6pm and again at midnight and purchased close to 1000 gallons of JetA. o Thursday, Aug. 13 - Three freighters arrived at the end of day Thursday and purchased 2,255 gallons of JetA fuel. o Friday, Aug. 14 - Three freighters arrived between 3am and 4am. 30 pallets total were offloaded. The aircraft purchased 1,731 gallons of JetA fuel. o In addition to the jet fuel sales, so far in the month of August, we have also received $10,512.92 in total charged to the freight companies for various fees, including after-hours callouts, ramp, hangar, handling, landing, cargo and ground power unit. o We received an email from Jeff Kohlert, Fly America, giving kudos to our Line Service Staff as he noted their many overnight hours spent servicing the recent flurry of freight haulers. Page 3 Airport Advisory Board Agenda August 25, 2020 A few new drone operators have contacted me in the past month to coordinate their operations. o Aug. 4 - An NIU drone pilot flew over NIU athletic fields for aerial footage for promo video. o Aug. 13 - An NIU drone pilot flew over NIU Convocation Center for aerial shots of ComEd trucks. o Aug. 18 – A drone pilot from Plano flew over - Crego/Kesslinger, over Facebook, and then to I-88 for aerial video for a real estate listing. o Aug. 21 – A Suter company drone pilot flew over their site, N of Bethany, E of Peace, for aerial photos of their new solar array. On Monday, Aug. 3, a Filtration Corp technician brought quotes for fuel farm and truck supplies and repairs. It has been determined that the 100LL fuel farm cabinet and fuel truck hoses were made 2Q 2004 with a 10-year life span. The JetA fuel farm cabinet hose was made 1Q 2009 with a 10-year life span and the JetA fuel truck hose was replaced in 2012 and is due to be changed in 2022. We replaced the AvGas fuel truck grounding cable, and the JetA fuel truck grounding cable will also be replaced soon. Kevin Howard has been working on details for the annual fuel farm inspections by the State Fire Marshal, which was scheduled for Thursday, August 20, but was cancelled by the fire marshal and is yet to be rescheduled. This cancellation gives Kevin an opportunity to ensure our farm is within compliance prior to the rescheduled inspection, as he discovered paperwork indicating past inspections had multiple infractions and fines. On Wednesday, Aug. 5, I noticed a tall crane, 200’, south and east of Cortland water tower and called the Cortland police department who sent an officer to ask for them to lower the crane, which they did immediately. I was given the contact for O’Donnell Crane, a DeKalb crane maintenance business that has a maintenance facility in Cortland, and was able to discuss their operations with the owner, who apologized for the maintenance operator’s errant action and gave assurances that he would communicate if ever an occasion arose for needing to erect a crane above 50’ in that location. On Monday, Aug. 10, five ComEd Helicopter Division employees including the Division manager, a supervisor, lead and two pilots arrived for a site visit of our Maintenance hangar in consideration of the possibility of moving their operations from Joliet (JOT) to DKB. Since they contract with Rogers Helicopters for their helicopters and maintenance, Rogers would move their operations to DKB also. They would occupy the entire hangar at 2200 Pleasant Street. Andy Raih and I began researching utilities and hangar rents. Kevin Howard is working with Stenstrom on details for converting the diesel fuel farm at 2200 Pleasant back to JetA fuel, especially if ComEd decides to become a tenant. The annual diesel fuel farm inspection is due next month and the 5-year fuel tank inspection is due in November. On Thursday, Aug. 13: o Mark Pumphrey replaced the windsock in front of the Maintenance hangar. o I received a call from an instructor pilot who was flying last evening in a Cessna 182 with its new owner. They departed Runway 20 to the south, climbing through 500’ encountered a flock of birds that were climbing straight up, parted, but struck three birds. The aircraft was able to continue flying without difficulty and they returned to Chicago Executive (PWK) without incident. The pilot has appropriately filed a wildlife-strike incident report with the FAA. On Sunday, Aug. 16, Midwest Hangar Corporation tenant, Steve Miller, requested that our Line Service Technician put 100LL AvGas into his plane while it sat in the hangar. This action is not permitted by State Fire Marshall and our technician told him she could not and would not refuel his plane while it was sitting inside the hangar. He pulled out the plane and she put fuel into it. Page 4 Airport Advisory Board Agenda August 25, 2020 On Tuesday, Aug. 18, one of Win Aviation’s Shorts Skyvan twin turboprop had a hydraulic failure while taxiing to the runway, lost ability to steer, but was able to safely stop in the grass along Taxiway C. Other than causing a taxiway edge light to breakaway, as designed, no other airport damage was incurred. Burt Johnson immediately assisted the Win Aviation technicians with securing the site while they extracted the aircraft from the grass and towed it to their maintenance facility for repairs. Later that day, T-hangar tenants Randy and Susan Cochran brought treats for our Line Service Staff, and I emailed them with our thanks. His response: “It was our pleasure. I cannot think of a harder working, more deserving group! Line Service at KDKB has always been top-notch! Very respectfully, Randy Cochran, Data Center Enhancements Inc.” F. Old Business 1. DKB-4331 – Taxiway – Rehabilitate T-Hangar Pavements, Airport Entrance Road, and Auto Parking Lot Airport Manager’s Summary: The final documents have been submitted by the City to IDOT to close Grant 111; closure date and amounts are yet to be determined. 2. DKB-4556: Relocate & Replace the Existing NAVAID Units on Runway Ends 2, 20, & 27 Airport Manager’s Summary: Our City local share obligation ($37,646.00) has been processed and will be sent to IDOT next week. The next step will be setting a construction schedule with the engineers and the contractor. 3. DKB-4800: Resurface Runway 2-20 Airport Manager’s Summary: This project was bid during the July 31, 2020, IDOT letting and we had two competitive bidders, with the low bid amount being 54% lower than the project estimate! I have been given confirmation by IDOT Division of Aeronautics that all FY2020 airport projects will be paid using all Federal funds through the CARES Act, which means that no State or Local funds will be required. Anticipated TIF funding for this project will be able to be redirected to other airport improvements that are being discussed. 4. AWOS (Automated Weather Observation System) Airport Manager’s Summary: As of July 27, 2020, our AWOS station has been officially covered by insurance. The AWOS land line has not been troubleshot by the AWOS-contracted technician, as of yet, due to continued COVID-19 restrictions to his travel. G. New Business c. Budget Airport Manager’s Summary: The City is on the front end of looking at FY2021 budget. I have kept expenditures at a minimum whenever possible. We are utilizing TIF funding toward the fuel farm emergency repairs, which will help with the budgeted expenditures. d. Hangar Rentals Airport Manager’s Summary: We have a new tie-down tenant, a piston two-seat Piper Tomahawk, who temporarily hangered in the West Community hangar until he could obtain tie-down ropes to secure it on the south ramp. On Friday, Aug. 14, I received notice from Eagle’s Nest E7-10 owner, Stan Albright, regarding sale of hanger to new tenant, Tom Richards, considered a sublease, which is anticipated closing by the end of Page 5 Airport Advisory Board Agenda August 25, 2020 August. I asked Matt Rose, City Attorney, to review, and, with his approval, Bill Nicklas signed the sublease document, and it was returned to Stan for their execution. On Thursday, Aug. 20, the AgriFlite owner/pilot called to inquire about a 1-month hangar rental for one of his single-engine turboprop crop duster Air Tractor, for which we would charge $700/month and provide space in the Maintenance hangar at 2200 Pleasant St. He made a site visit on Friday, Aug. 21, and asked that we proceed with getting him a lease agreement. I asked Matt Rose, City Attorney, to review our West Community hangar lease agreement for applicability in this case. He anticipates moving the aircraft to the Maintenance hangar on Aug. 24 or 25. I have been working with Matt Rose in reviewing all hangar tenant leases, land leases and SASO agreements and I anticipate him having recommendations prepare the week of Aug. 24. H. Adjournment Page 6