Airport to close 3 weeks for runway repairs

The Havre City-County Airport will be closed Aug. 3 to Aug. 21 while an overdue rehabilitation of the runway is completed.

Terry Knowlton, general manager of the airport, said the reconstruction of the runway is part of the $3.1 million rehabilitation program the airport is undertaking.

One runway is closed now, he said, and another will have to be closed for three weeks.

Airplane traffic will come to a halt, he said.

“We will handle helicopter traffic,” he said.

Knowlton said he was sorry the runway had to close. It will mean a temporary halt to Cape Air flights into the city.

Cape Air has been carrying about 400 passengers a month, an increase from the average of 250 carried by its predecessor organizations.

Having to cancel the flights will be costly for the airport, he said.

Medical flights will take off from airports in Chinook or Big Sandy, he said.

Despite the problems it is creating, Knowlton said he is glad the work is being done.

The runway was deteriorating, he said, with cracks in the pavement.

Work on the project is about two-thirds complete, he said.

The crews are working 12-hour days Monday through Thursday and half days on Friday, he said.

Everyone is anxious to get the work done as soon as possible, he said.

Knowlton said he would like to see further renovations at the airport and is hoping they can be completed in 2017.