The Liberty Gazette
April 26, 2022
Ely Air Lines
By Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely
Linda: Some of my most interesting landing stories come from flying in Africa. Often, the best accommodations are dirt strips. Vocal music from a welcoming crowd is a beautiful sound, but we don’t get to hear that until we clear the runway. And I don’t mean when we taxi off the runway. I mean pre-landing clearing. A low fly-by is sometimes necessary for a couple of reasons. In some places, we look toward the trees along the sides of the runway for guerillas. The kind with machine guns. In other places, where nut jobs might not be a present danger, we may need to “scootch” the cows over. “Scootch” is a word I learned from Dr. Brother Jimmie Clemmons (who also happened to be my first passenger when I got my private pilot certificate). To be safe and effective, the pilot brings the plane down just low enough to encourage cows or other animals to move off the runway. It’s like asking nicely, please “moove.”
All this to say that the Liberty Municipal Airport has been in operation a long time without a wildlife fence fully enclosing the airport, and it appears we will finally have that. That’s good for pilots, passengers, and wildlife. The engineering firm of Mead and Hunt completed their wildlife hazard site visit here earlier this month to assess the situation prior to completing installation of the fence. The Texas Department of Transportation’s Aviation Division holds the purse strings for all federal and state funding for Texas airports, and they require this survey before the work is completed. Now that item can be checked off the list, thanks to the LCDC.
Meanwhile, trees that obstructed a safe approach to landing to the south (runway 16), have been cut down. The prevailing wind around here is from the south, so that’s the most-used runway. When the FAA creates instrument approaches, it’s for aircraft to be able to land in low visibility conditions. It’s critical that there be nothing encroaching on or obstructing an approach path. Take-offs are optional. Landings are not. So not only is this a safety factor, but also preservation of the airport as an operational facility, meeting the standards expected to stay in good standing with grant assurances. When an airport operator receives federal or state grants, they contractually agree to continue to operate the airport as an airport, safely and in the manner generally accepted for airport operations.
TXDoT’s top two priorities for funding are safety and preservation. That is, projects needed to make the airport safe for aircraft operations, and projects to preserve the functional or structural integrity of the airport.
It was nice to hear Kelly Stretcher explain to the LCDC (and City Council) the sad state of affairs in this city, the potential, and ideas on how to fix it. Kelly has a gentle demeanor, so people with sensitive feelings have an easier time hearing truth from him. Whatever it takes, kids. At least the airport is getting some love.
ElyAirLines.blogspot.com
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