(The Center Square) — The federal government is sending $5 million to the Greenville Downtown Airport for a runway improvement project.
The money will go to the second phase of the Runway 1-19 Safety Area improvement project at the busiest general aviation airport in South Carolina.
The money is part of roughly $267.7 million in grants the Federal Aviation Administration awarded to airports nationwide. Roughly $92 million of the federal grants announced were awarded to 21 airports for various green initiatives, ranging from solar panels to electric buses to electrification studies.
“This project will enable the airport to continue to develop additional safety measures related to the current runway safety area program that is underway,” James Stephens, the Greenville Downtown Airport Director, said in a statement to The Center Square. “This summer, the airport will be accepting bids for the installation of an Engineered Material Arresting System for the south end of our primary runway, and construction will begin next summer.
“Then, as a continuation of the program, these newly announced funds will be utilized to further enhance the runway safety area on the north end of the same runway,” Stephens added. “Once completed, the overall project will provide additional safety measures for aircraft that operate into and out of GMU by providing EMAS overruns on both ends of the primary runway.”