Huntsville International Airport Releases Newly Approved Master Plan

Huntsville International Airport completed the update of the airport's new Master Plan. The FAA has accepted the document so the process is now complete. Representatives from the Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority and the project team, led by Michael Baker International spent months engaging community leaders, business owners, and residents to encourage them to share their vision and aspirations for the future of Huntsville International Airport. Participants shared ideas, provided feedback on community values, and learned more about the master planning vision throughout the process.

The FAA describes airport planning as a systematic process used to establish guidelines for the efficient development of airports that is consistent with local, state and national goals. A key objective of airport planning is to assure the effective use of airport resources in order to satisfy aviation demand in a financially feasible manner. Airport planning may be as broad based as the national system plan or more centrally focused like the airport master plan that Huntsville International Airport just completed.

 An airport master plan represents the airport’s blueprint for long-term development. A few of the goals of a master plan are:

• To provide a graphic representation of existing airport features, future airport development and anticipated land use.

• To establish a realistic schedule for implementation of the proposed development

• To identify a realistic financial plan to support the development.

• To validate the plan technically and procedurally through investigation of concepts and alternatives on technical, economic and environmental grounds.

• To prepare and present a plan to the public that adequately addresses all relevant issues and satisfies local, state and federal regulations.

• To establish a framework for a continuous planning process.

"Huntsville International Airport team members, regional leaders, local business owners, and residents in our community worked in tandem discussing and developing this long-range vision for the airport", said Rick Tucker, Huntsville International Airport CEO. This was a collective effort from many individuals that both care about the airport and understand that Huntsville's economic future is tied to our airport's success."