GAINESVILLE - It shouldn't be too much longer before much larger commercial airplanes will be able to land at Gainesville's Lee Gilmer Airport.<br />
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Terry Palmer is the airport manager, and he said Friday the Georgia Department of Transportation has signed off on the paperwork for allowing the larger planes, and GDOT has sent the documents to the Federal Aviation Administration for publication in its airport facilities directory.<br />
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"Our 100,000-lb., dual wheel gear capability is going to be published - we just haven't been able to get confirmation from FAA of what publication those will be showing up in," said Palmer.<br />
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He said he knows that GDOT signed the documentation on November 7 and then sent the paperwork to the FAA by November 12, and it takes 56 days from the FAA's approval to date of publication. That step clears the way for the heavier craft to land at Lee Gilmer.<br />
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Palmer said all of this follows a pavement strength study funded by the city of Gainesville and Hall County at the end of the summer. He said the city has consistently made improvements to the airport, including lengthening of the runway and adding an instrument landing system.<br />
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"This is kind of like the missing piece of the puzzle to help maximize those improvements," said Palmer.<br />
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Under current guidelines, planes with a weight load of 20,000 lbs. single wheel are the only ones allowed to land at Lee Gilmer. City and county officials agree the increased weight limit will mean a boost to the economy. <br />
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"What this has done is really just completed our plans to allow those [larger] airplanes all along to come in here," said Palmer. "The larger business jets now can come in here without fear of violating the published weight limits."<br />
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