Angel Fire Airport/Courtesy photo
ANGEL FIRE AIRPORT NEWS
Angel Fire Airport, the fourth highest elevation airport in the United States, and highest airport outside of Colorado, will be undertaking several major improvements over the next year to improve the pilot / passenger experience for those flying to-and-from the Resort Town. Combined with these improvements, the Airport Advisory Board in collaboration with the Colfax County Commissioners will be undertaking a community-based rebranding project.
Spring of 2021 will see the 8900’ x 100’ runway receive slurry seal and seal coat as preventative maintenance, particularly important for a mountain airport with a field elevation of 8,380 feet above sea level, where exposure to snow, ice and intense UV rays is common. The $326,144 funding is provided by the Federal Aviation Administration under the Airport Improvement Grant program intended to provide infrastructure assistance for airports included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). Funding for this program is supported by aviation-specific user fees, aviation fuel taxes and other similar revenue sources.
A Federal CARES Act Grant, was received to help improve the Fixed Base Operations (FBO) area of the Angel Fire Airport. In small, general aviation airports that do not have scheduled services, the FBO is where passengers embark / disembark for their flights and is often the first-impression visitors encounter when coming to a new area. The Angel Fire FBO is operated by Colfax County and has seen increases in the number of aircraft operations exceeding 50% over the past year, with a corresponding increase in fuel and services sales. Rehabilitation of the FBO is intended to improve the customer experience and provide additional flight planning resources for pilots.
In the summer of 2021, Angel Fire Airport will begin construction of its first ever single-aircraft hangars utilizing a grant from The New Mexico Department of Transportation Aviation Division. The expectation is to build six box hangars that will be rented to aircraft owners for storage / protection of their aircraft. This will provide more availability in the large, shared hangar currently at the airport for transient aircraft and larger turbine aircraft that frequent the airport.
With these significant improvements scheduled over the next several months, the Angel Fire Airport Advisory Board has decided to enlist the assistance of the community as well as aviation enthusiasts around the country in redesigning the airport logo. Anyone interested in submitting a design is encouraged to provide a full color image to the Fraser MacPhee, Airport Manager at fmacphee@co.colfax.nm.us. The winner is expected to be announced in late May 2021. Local pilots from Angel Fire will provide the winner a flight around the area as a thank you.