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January 26th, 2008, 10:35
| #1 |
| Old Skool  Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: USA
Posts: 2,749
|  Building an airstrip
Does anyone know what all is involved with building an airstrip on a private piece of property in a rural area? I'm not talking about anything fancy...just a good sized, maybe 2000x40' grass or dirt runway next to a farm house. I've been Googling it and found some good legal advice on how to get it ok'd by neighbors, local government, etc. but I haven't found much on the practical, "this is how to construct it, this is what it'll cost, etc." type details. Maybe it's outrageously more work and money than what it's worth, but that's also what some people say about aircraft ownership when in reality it's not that big of a deal. So does anyone have experience with such developments? Any good web sites that explain the process?
__________________ http://cessna140.flyblog.com CFI, CFII, MEI, Master Instructor 2000+ TT Manager for a Cessna Pilot Center 5 years as an active CFI Skydiver in training Aircraft owner (1946 Cessna 140) |
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January 26th, 2008, 10:47
| #2 |
| Old Skool  Join Date: May 2007 Location: Southern Mecca
Posts: 2,063
| Re: Building an airstrip
While I don't know how much it will cost you to do this, I have done some work on pipelines and from flying off of grass strips, they look much like right of ways. If you want a nice strip, you will need to level it , put in a substrate to help with drainage, crown it down the center, and get a good covering of grass growing. That is going to take some heavy earthmoving equipment, (read bulldozer,) if you want to get it done quikly. Also need some surveying equipment to get the lines straight. Or you can go low tech, just cut out a swath, and hope for the best! I would definitely get with a lawyer to make sure you have covered all bases and if there are any neighbors nearby, get there OK.
__________________ "Blew out my flip flops." |
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January 26th, 2008, 10:59
| #3 |
| Junior Member  Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Denver, Colorado
Posts: 294
| Re: Building an airstrip http://eaa1246.org/docs/farm_ranch_airstrips.pdf It will have to do a lot with your local laws and regulation. -Jason www.flyboulder.com |
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January 26th, 2008, 11:34
| #4 |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: GTA, GE
Posts: 117
| Re: Building an airstrip
Conveniently enough, that's what my company in the Army does. PM Me with an email address and I'll try to see what I can find on digits. Our Assault Landing Zones are C-17 and C-130 capable, so you'll have to scale it down. Minimally, you will need earthmoving equipment. Scrapers, Graders, Bucket Loaders, Dump Trucks. Materials cost will be kind of expensive. However, the one thing you've got going is that your bearing ratio will be significantly lower. I'd find a surveyor, have him lay it out and get some soil tests done before you start any serious consideration. That way you know if you have to cut the soil out and put in some clay and construct serious drainage and erosion control measures. In addition, you can have him/her check the approach and departure angles. Wow, that was a lot. Obviously the ones that I work on are a little more involved, but the concepts are still the same if you want it to last and be safe to operate from.
__________________ "I was commissioned to lead, not to read" 21A5P5W |
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January 26th, 2008, 12:07
| #5 |
| Old Skool Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: GKY
Posts: 4,163
| Re: Building an airstrip
It seems to me like a lot of that work could be done by a capable landscaper with a Bobcat and the proper attachments.
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January 26th, 2008, 12:47
| #6 |
| Old Skool  Join Date: May 2004 Location: Dallas TX
Posts: 2,690
| Re: Building an airstrip
check with laywers Survey gravel sand topsoil grass Tires for edge markings, with reflectors if you plan on landing there at dusk. Don't try to make it 100% drainable, that is what concrete is for, just get it to where it will drain within a day or so after a good storm
__________________ "You may all go to Hell, I shall go to Texas" David Crockett |
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January 26th, 2008, 12:51
| #7 | |
| Old Skool  Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: 'Merica
Posts: 2,580
| Re: Building an airstrip
I had a friend who built a grass strip in Texas, near San Antonio. To hear him tell of all the seemingly unrelated hoops he had to jump through in order to get approval from the municipal organizations (apparently the US Post Office was the most complex, followed by the local school board), it is amazing that he was able to get it done at all. Lots and lots of hoops that seem completely unrelated to an airstrip.
__________________ Fighter pilots don't get PTSD -- they give it. Quote:
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January 26th, 2008, 14:00
| #8 | |
| Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: GTA, GE
Posts: 117
| Re: Building an airstrip Quote:
 Probably the simplest advice here. As for the bobcat, until you've seen a bobcat's ability to grade and compact, I'd say no. Its AWESOME for Airfield Seizure and Airfield Damage Repair though. I really like it. My platoon blew all three engines in our T200's in Iraq using them up. he he. Oh, and I PM'ed you back.
__________________ "I was commissioned to lead, not to read" 21A5P5W | |
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January 26th, 2008, 14:33
| #9 | |
| Senior Member  Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Asheville/Hendersonville, NC
Posts: 360
| Re: Building an airstrip Quote:
__________________ ASEL Private Pilot, 50+ hours. | |
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January 26th, 2008, 14:37
| #10 |
| Junior Member  Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 228
| Re: Building an airstrip
I have a friend that has a ranch in Montana and here is his airstrip... Find a flat edge of a field. Put up hangar and windsock. Done. Granted he has a piper cub and Montana is a little easier on rules!! Sidenote.... when I asked him how long he has had a pilots license his reply was "Huh?". "what do I need a license for? Does the government own the air now too?" He has been flying for 40 years and is one of the best pilots I have flown with. That about sums up Montana! |
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January 26th, 2008, 18:10
| #11 | |
| Senior Member  Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Grand Forks/UND
Posts: 537
| Re: Building an airstrip Quote:
__________________ Air Traffic Controller's motto----If the clouds are low and thick, pick up the phone and call in sick. | |
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January 26th, 2008, 21:20
| #12 |
| Old Skool Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: South 40
Posts: 2,285
| Re: Building an airstrip
jrh,Just check with the county about any regs,Then mark off your airstrip.Borrow a tractor with a disc,and disk up the airstrip.Then unhook from the disc and hookup the float/landplane.You can pull the dirt any way you want to pull a crown. After you get the strip in the condition that you want,Stay off of it,let it rain on it several times and come mid spring,you should be good to go on your new grass strip.We used to do this every spring,putting in new strips to work the ag planes off of and they worked great for us.Maybe you could trade some sightseeing trips for use of the tractor and implements.
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January 27th, 2008, 01:04
| #13 |
| Junior Member  Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: KCHA, KTYS, KATL
Posts: 201
 | Re: Building an airstrip
just grab a shovel and start leveling it out, pick up some grass seed at the Home Depot...may want to invest in a big john deere to keep her mowed....pushing a few thousand feet would be a pain.   |
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January 27th, 2008, 08:18
| #14 |
| Newbie Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 27
| Re: Building an airstrip
It depends on the state and even the local municipalities. You're limiting factor is zoning more than actual regs. AOPA has put together an info packet on putting in your own strip that you can call and request. It's your choice whether you have the FAA put it on the sectional or not. I think if you do register it with the FAA and get it on the map you get a little more help from them if someone tried to put up a tower close by, etc. Definitely call AOPA and get the info pack. |
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